Far From Perfect
by ChEmMiE
Summary: AU - Set when Luby were in high school. Abby is living a not-so-perfect life!
1. Introduction

This is a fanfic set when theyn were all in High School, all though I'm pretty sure it's today and not like 20 years ago :P  
It's pretty evil. I usually refer to it as my Killer fanfic since I write on it whenevver I'm in a bad/killer mood. It's my way of not hurting real life people (Yeah... My friends say I'm the next 'World Dictator'... Or maybe just the next big serial killer)

Anyways... I know I'm really evil towards Abby (Not so much in the beginning, but trust me, IT WILL COME), which is kind of ironic since she is definitely my faveorite character / pretty much the reason for why I watch the show...  
But I think that's why I'm evil to her... There's absolutely no fun in hurting the people I don't like :P

The fanfiction is rated M due to some, well, let's just say EVIL things later in the story...

I'm not that professionel at writing fanfictions, and english is NOT my first language, so be nice when reading it :P

I'd really, REALLY love it if you reviw... That would totally make my day :P

I know this chapter is short... there WILL be longer ones! (Yeah... already have 19 chapters written)... And this is pretty, or well, VERY bad!! It will get way better!! Both the story AND the writing :P

Oh yeah... the disclaimer: I do not own ER!! I do own some of the characters, but well... Don't expect to earn any money on them :P

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Far From Perfect

**Chapter 1 - Introduction**

Abby leaned up against the big, old willow tree behind her school. She always hid out there during lunch. Opening her purse, she took out a piece of dry bread. She didn't have any money to buy lunch, and this was all she could find at home. She had found an apple too, but she had given that to Eric.

Breaking a little piece off, she closed her eyes and began eating it. Only four more months of school and freshman year.

Suddenly something got in the way of the sun, making Abby open one eye to see a boy standing in front of her. She'd never seen him before.

"Can I sit?" He asked her kind of shy. He had some kind of accent. Abby shrugged her shoulders.

"Why not? Where are you from?"

"Croatia. Just moved here last week. I'm Luka." Abby gave him a weak smile before looking at her hands in her lap.

"I'm Abby." For a few seconds none of them said anything before Abby turned to look at him.

"You know, you really shouldn't be talking with me." A little smile formed on his face and Abby couldn't help but notice how good he looked.

"Why, are you a trouble maker?" Abby sighed and turned to look back at her hands.

"No. But according to everyone here, I'm the school slut. So unless you want a bad reputation, you really shouldn't be hanging out here." Luka just looked questionable at her.

"Slut?" Abby let out a little chuckle.

"I'm sorry, my English isn't the best." She quickly glanced up at him and tucked a strand of her elbow long highlighted, dark brown hair behind her ear.

"That's okay. A slut is a person who sleeps with everyone." Luka looked shocked at her for a few seconds, before shaking his head.

"So is it true? 'Cause you don't look like one of those people." Biting her lip, she looked at him, amazed that he had actually asked her that. Slowly she began shaking her head and looked away.

"No. None of the things they say are true. I've never slept with anyone. They just like spreading false rumors." When she looked back up, she saw Luka was starring at her. She was just about to say something when the bell rang. She quickly got up and brushed off her jeans.

"Well, I better get to PE." Before he could say or do anything, Abby had disappeared back into the building.

* * *

"I'm home." Abby yelled as she entered the small apartment. She didn't even get to close the front door before her 9-year-old brother came out of their room, crying.

"Eric, what's wrong?" She quickly kicked the door closed behind her and walked over to her brother.

"The coffee machine didn't wanna work, so mom began yelling and throwing with stuff." Throwing her bag on the floor she put her arms around him.

"It's okay. It's not your fault. Did she leave?" He nodded and removed the last tears from his face. Picking up her bag, she led him back into their room where she sat him on the bed.

"Got any homework?" Eric nodded.

"Math and English." Abby grabbed his books from his backpack and put them next to him.

"Okay, I'm gonna have to go to work. I think there's still a single slice of bread left if you get really hungry." Eric just nodded, listening to his sister. "I'll try to buy some food on the way back. But if I'm not home by 9:30, promise me you'll go to bed." Once again Eric nodded.

"I promise."

"If you have any trouble with your homework, I'll help you tomorrow before school, okay?" Nodding, Eric opened his book to do his math as Abby left.

* * *

Abby removed the sweat from her forehead after she threw away the trash bag.

"Wyzcenski, table 4 needs cleaned." She rolled her eyes, but careful that her boss wouldn't notice. Even here everybody hated her.

"Abby?" Turning around she saw Luka walking towards her. This was so embarrassing.

"Hi." She nodded towards the bag in his hand. "Like McDonald's food, huh?" He nodded.

"It's okay. But I might have to come here a little more often, since you work here." Abby shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, gotta earn money somehow."

"Wyzcenski, what are you doing? You're supposed to be working, not chitty-chatting." Biting her lip she quickly turned back around and continued wiping the table.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow at school." With that Luka left.

"Wyzcenski, you're staying late today." She just nodded, knowing she couldn't do anything about it.

* * *

It was almost midnight when she came home. After staying over an hour longer than she should have, she had to take another route home, just so she could get some food. As quietly as possible she put the little food she'd gotten away before heading for her room. Eric was fast asleep and all of his schoolwork was packed away. A sad smile formed on Abby's face. Eric was still so little. He didn't know everything what was going on. He was still so innocent. Abby felt more like a mother to him than a sister. She had practically raised him, and she still took care of him, making sure he got food and got to school. Putting her stuff away, she quietly slipped into bed, and before long she was fast asleep as well.


	2. A perfectly normal family… Or not!

Well... I decided to just upload another chapter...  
What can I say, I hate when there is only one chapter in fanfics :P

Anyways... This one is a bit longer :P  
ENJOY :)

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**Chapter 2 – A perfectly normal family… Or not!**

Next morning when Abby woke up, Eric was already up and had his bed made. Yawning, she slipped out of bed and grabbed some clothes on her way to the bathroom. Putting her things on the closed toilet lid, she carefully slipped into the shower, letting the water run down her body for a few minutes, trying to wake up a little bit more.

Stepping out of the cold shower, she looked at herself in the mirror. She bit her lower lip, seeing her own reflection in the glass. She hated her body. She wasn't very tall and she was way too skinny. And all the bruises and cuts didn't help very much either.

She quickly put on some old jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt to hide up the blue marks, before putting her wet hair in a ponytail and going to the kitchen.

Eric was sitting at the table, eating a cereal bar, when Abby joined him.

"Mom's home. She locked herself in her room." Abby gave her brother a sad smile.

"It'll be alright." She started eating her own breakfast while she kept starring at the table. She knew it wasn't going to be okay. She knew what was going to happen. Either their mom would run away or try to commit suicide or something crazy like that. It always ended up that way whenever she got depressed.

Getting up, she threw her trash away and went to get ready for school.

* * *

When the bell rang, Abby quickly picked up her algebra book and hurried out of the room, getting away from all the stares and the whispering as fast as possible. She stuffed her things into her locker and took out her lunch. As usual, she went to the big tree behind the school, but today someone was already there, leaning up against it.

"Hey." Luka smiled at Abby, but she just gave him a confused look.

"Hi?" She wasn't exactly sure what to do or say. This guy was cute, and it seemed like he liked her. But Abby didn't feel comfortable being around other people, and least of all boys. And besides, why would anyone want to be friends with her? "Aren't you gonna go to lunch?"

Luka shrugged his shoulders and held up a sandwich. "Brought it with me." Abby couldn't help but give him a little smile.

"So was yesterday your first day?" She crossed her arms as if to protect herself, while watching him unwrap his sandwich.

"Yep. My very first day in an American high school." He took a huge bite and smiled at Abby.

"You know, I'm pretty sure all the kids in there will think it's really exciting to speak with a foreigner. You can probably get a lot of friends in no time." It wasn't that Abby didn't want to talk to him, she just knew that he would get a bad reputation if he did, and she didn't want that for him.

"I know. I'm going with my brother and some of his friends tomorrow." Abby nodded and looked down. This was one of those awkward moments.

"Aren't you gonna eat anything?" Surprised, Abby looked up. She had totally forgotten all about her own lunch.

"Nah," She said shrugging her shoulders. "I'm not really hungry. Had a huge breakfast." She lied. It was far from a big breakfast, but it beat nothing at all. And she could always eat her lunch on the way home, or save it for later.

Luka just nodded. "Your boss didn't look too happy yesterday." She looked away as she began blushing. It was so embarrassing that he had seen her there.

"She's always like that. Yesterday was actually one of her good days."

Luka made a funny face. "That sucks. I would hate working with someone like her."

Abby gave him a faint smile. "I know, but I'll survive. Have to get money somehow, you know?" Luka just nodded as he finished his sandwich.

"Well, I better go. See you around." Abby gave him a shy smile and walked away before Luka could say anything.

* * *

After school, Abby had to go watch Eric's soccer game. She had promised him she would come.

It was really hot outside. Especially for Chicago. Heat waves weren't exactly normal here in January. Abby could feel the sweat on her forehead and her body. If she could just wear skirts and normal short sleeved shirts like everyone else. But it wasn't just the heat making her sweat. Luka had moved to her P.E. class. They hadn't talked during class, only exchanged looks. And smiles.

She liked him. She liked him a lot. But he was so hot. She had already heard a lot of girls talking about how they were already in love with him.

She'd never even been into boys, so why does the first one she likes have to be the one guy totally out of her league. She'll never have a chance when all of the 1000 other girls in the school are all over him as well.

* * *

"And did you see that one time, when Josh kicked the ball to me, and the person from the other team almost got it?"

"Mhm." Eric kept going on about the game. He was so excited because they had won and he had scored the winning goal.

"I can't wait to tell mom about it."

Abby gave her brother a fake smile. "I think she'll be so proud of you." But Abby knew that just the chances of her being out of bed were very small.

They were on the way up the stairs to their apartment on the 4th floor, and they were talking about their day. Or well, Eric did all the talking.

"And I got a B+ for my math test. Only 2 people got a better grade than me."

"That's good." Abby got out her key while Eric continued to talk. They walked in, and when they closed the door, their mother came out of the kitchen wearing an apron.

"Abby, Eric, where have you been? I've been so worried. School ended over 3 hours ago" Tears started falling down her cheeks. Abby just rolled her eyes and threw her bag in her room.

"Relax, Maggie. Eric had a soccer game." Immediately the tears stopped, and she looked at Eric who still hadn't moved.

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry I wasn't there." The tears had reappeared, and she hurried over to Eric and began hugging him.

"It's okay, mom. Really." He might only be 9, but he still knew that his mom was sick, and was embarrassed to bring her places.

Maggie quickly pulled back and looked at her two kids. "I was gonna make some dinner, but I was too worried. I couldn't concentrate."

"Can you make spaghetti? Please, mom!"

"Of course, sweetie. Anything for my lovely boy." She hurried back to the kitchen, but then turned around and looked at Abby. "Is that okay with you, honey?"

Abby wanted to tell her that she didn't care and wasn't hungry, but she knew it would just cause a huge scene. And besides, she was pretty hungry. "Sure, Maggie." She knew her mom hated when she called her Maggie, but she just couldn't get herself to call her 'mom'. She had never been a mom for her.


	3. Meet Richard

Thank you SO MUCH for the reviews Sashum-Mushroom and MauraFan228... I really appreciate it :P

This is where the story starts to get 'evil'...  
I named Abby's step dad 'Richard' after her ex... dunno why, but instead of making 'Richard Lockhart' her husband, he's her stepdad :P

Sorry about this chapter not being very long...  
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**Chapter 3 – Meet Richard**

During dinner, Maggie was like super mom. She was so excited about Eric's game, and the two of them laughed almost the entire time. Abby just had on a fake smile and pretended to be interested as well. But she knew that it was only gonna last a very short time, so she had learned not to fall for it and just hide her emotions. Eric still got so sad whenever she changed, but he had gotten better.

Both Abby and Eric turned around when they heard the front door slam.

"Hi, honey." Maggie got up and kissed her husband. Abby and Eric's step dad. "How was work?" He barely got to answer her before she went and got another plate. "I made spaghetti. It's really delicious." He sat down next to Maggie, right across the table from Abby.

"Hi Richard." Abby could feel him giving her brother a fake smile. Hesitating, she looked up at him as well and gave him a small, forced smile, before looking back down at her food. She could smell that he had been drinking, and he seemed to be in the same bad mood he was always in.

He worked in some kind of a factory in one of the slum parts of the city. He was one of the bosses. Abby wasn't even sure exactly what it was, but she usually worked down there, if she wasn't working at McDonald's.

"Abby, go get me a beer." Abby just nodded, knowing that she had to do what he told her. Otherwise he would get really angry. She quickly got up and got the beer for him, putting her plate in the sink at the same time. He didn't even say 'thank you', he just ripped it out of her hand

"I'm gonna go do my homework." No one said anything, so Abby started to walk away, until her mother's voice stopped her.

"Don't forget you have to do the dishes, Abby."

Abby just closed her eyes, "I know." And continued into her room.

* * *

It was Saturday, and Abby had been up since 6. She had had an 8 hour shift at McDonald's, which as usual meant 8 hours of her boss yelling at her. She then had to work at Richard's factory for 6 hours, doing nothing but cleaning and carrying heavy boxes, where she didn't even know what was in them. She hated that job, and she almost never got paid. Richard said that it was only fair, since he was the one to pay the rent and the food, and Maggie never helped, so Abby would have to help pay. But if that was true, then how come she was the one who usually bought their food, and he bought the alcohol?

It was almost 11 when she got home. Walking into the dark apartment, she tried to be as quiet as possible. She knew that Eric was spending the night at a friend's house, but she didn't want to wake up Maggie or Richard.

She was tiptoeing through the room. She was very exhausted and really just wanted to go to bed.

"Abby!" She stopped dead in her tracks as she heard his voice coming from the couch. Closing her eyes, she slowly turned around. "Come here!" She opened her eyes, and as she slowly walked towards him, she bit her lower lip. When she stood right in front of him, she could see all the anger in his eyes, and she began to feel the fear build up inside her. It was probably just over something stupid, like his favorite team having lost a game.

He started stroking the side of her face and pulled out her ponytail, making her long hair fall down over her shoulders.

"Let's have some fun." He began moving his hands down her body, but when they reached her waist, Abby grabbed them and gently removed them from her body.

"Maggie's here." Before she could do anything she felt his hand across her face.

"Don't you ever talk back to me you little bitch!"

Abby could feel her cheek burning as she looked down. "I'm sorry." Knowing what was going to happen, she could feel her eyes fill up with water.

Richard got up from the couch and grabbed Abby's upper arm so tight that she could feel the bruise forming, and pulled her after him into the bedroom.

"So since that stupid bitch, claming to be your mother, once again decided to leave, you're gonna have to do her job for her! But that's okay, cause you're a lot better anyway." Abby didn't do anything. She just stood paralysed, starring at the floor, until he pushed her hard enough that she banged into the wall.

"What? Am I supposed to do everything myself?" Abby quickly shook her head as she bit her lip. She was used to this. She knew what was going to happen if she didn't do exactly as he said. Slowly and hesitating she started to take off her shirt. But it was difficult when her hands were shaking so much.

"That's better. Good girl." Abby hated it when he was suddenly 'Mr. Nice'. Because in 1 second that could all change, and he would suddenly start beating her. She also knew he was faking it. He was just waiting for an excuse, didn't even have to be a good one, so he could hurt her some more.

She slowly removed the rest of her clothes, revealing her bruised and skinny body. He nodded towards the bed, and with small steps, Abby walked over and sat down, while trying to cover up herself with her arms. Richard just pushed her so she was laying down, and stared to take off his own clothes as well.

Turning her head, Abby starred at the picture on the wall, trying not to think about what was happening. She had stopped crying and fighting him a long time ago, knowing that it would only make it worse.


	4. Awkward

Thanks A LOT!! for the reviews... Really appreciate them :P  
I know this chapter is also pretty short, but there will come some longer ones!  
(And yeah... I oficially SUCK at coming up with titles...)

**Chapter 4 – Awkward**

"Eric, wait up!" Abby had taken Eric to Wal-Mart to get some stuff he needed for school. He was his usual hyper self, which he always was after soccer practice. "Eric, slow down please. I can't keep up with you!"

"Sorry. I forgot." A little smile crept upon Abby's face as she caught up with her brother. Richard had stepped on her left ankle the evening before, on purpose, causing a mild sprain. But of course she couldn't tell Eric that, so she said she twisted it walking down the stairs.

"So we've got the pencils and the paper. Anything else you needed?" Eric, with his head buried in some comic book, shook his head.

"Or wait, actually, Abby, please! Can I please get some Twizzlers?" Abby rolled her eyes and looked at Eric's puppy face.

"Eric, I don't know." Eric started pouting and clasped his hands together in front of him, pretending to beg.

"Please, Abby! Pretty please!" Abby sighed defeated and closed her eyes.

"Fine. But the smallest pack you can find, and _you_ do the dishes tonight!"

"Thanks sis!" Abby sighed again as Eric ran towards the candy isle, and slowly started following him.

* * *

When she finally reached the isle, she saw Eric talking with someone. She bit her lip. She didn't like it when Eric talked to strangers. "Eric!" The little boy looked up, and seeing Abby's face he knew what she was thinking.

"Sorry Abby!" But at the same time the other person spun around. Abby froze and she could feel her cheeks blushing.

"Luka? What are you doing here?" Luka smiled and held up some candy.

"Shopping with my parents. Was told to get the candy. And hello to you too!" Abby looked down embarrassed, happy when Eric interrupted them.

"So you guys know each other?" Abby looked at her brother who had a huge grin on his face, and took a deep breath.

"Luka, this is my annoying little brother Eric. Eric, that's Luka. He's new at our school." Eric faked an angel face, pretending to feel hurt, making Luka put his arm around his neck.

"Sorry, Abby, but I'm gonna have to team up with your brother here. I have an older brother myself, so I know how it feels to be picked on by older siblings." Abby looked stunned at the two boys in front of her, not believing her own eyes.

"Whatever. Ready to go, Eric?" But before Eric had time to reply, Luka let go of him.

"But of course, since I am a younger brother myself, I also know perfectly fine that that face before was fake, and that Abby was most probably 100 correct with her statement before." This time it was Eric's jaw that fell to the ground.

"Yeah, Abby. I'm ready." He looked at Luka who was chuckling, but that turned into curiosity when he saw Abby limping towards her brother.

"What happened?" Abby opened her mouth to reply, but Eric was quicker.

"Oh, she lost her balance on her high heel while pole dancing at a strip club last night." Abby's face turned into a burning red color as she felt Luka starring at her, laughing, so she sent Eric a killer look.

"Very funny, Eric." She looked down, still embarrassed from the comment before, while chewing on her lower lip. "I twisted it while walking down some stairs."

"You just have to ruin all the fun, don't you?" She smacked Eric on the top of his head and took the Twizzlers out of his hand.

"Move it, boy. Time to go home." She looked at Luka for a second before following Eric. "See you tomorrow, Luka!"

* * *

"Where have you been? You should have been home an hour ago!" Eric held up his plastic bag.

"Wal-Mart. Sorry, needed pens and paper for school." Richard didn't even look up from his newspaper.

"Okay. Your mother will be here with dinner soon. Just go to your room in the mean time." Both kids nodded and walked, or limped, towards their room, but Richard gabbed Abby's arm. "Not you. I need to speak with you." Chills ran through her body by the touch of his hand tightly wrapped around her lower arm.  
She bit her lip and held her breath till her brother was out of hearing range. "It doesn't take an hour to go to Wal-Mart for paper and pens!" He tightened his grip on her arm.

"We ran into someone we know and started talking. And it hurts when I walk on my foot. I can't walk very fast." She started rambling, trying not to let the pain get to her. This time he looked up at her scared face, as he tightened his grip enough to cut off the blood circulation to her hand.

"No food for you tonight. Just say you aren't hungry and stay in your room!" She nodded while biting her lip enough to make it bleed, and almost gasped for air as he released his grip on her. He went back to his newspaper article on some rape victim like nothing had happened, while Abby walked to her and Eric's room.

"Abby and Lucas sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Abby threw her sweater at Eric, shutting him up.

"We're NOT dating. And it's _Luka_, not _Lucas!"_

"Oh yeah? Then how come you blushed like crazy when you saw him? I'm not stupid, Abby!" She gave him a dead stare and fell down on her bed.

"Just shut up, Eric. I just met him. And besides, every single girl in the school has a crush on him already. Why would he ever even just look at me?" Eric got up and joined Abby on her bed.

"Because you're pretty?" Abby shot him an evil look, telling him to get lost. "Or maybe because he looked just as 'in love' as you when he saw you." Abby quickly sat up und punched his shoulder, causing him to fall off the bed.

"Eric, don't make fun of me, you know I hate it. And you shouldn't lie, you're better than that!" Eric was about to reply, but before he had a chance Abby got up and went to the door. "I'll go take a shower. Just tell them I wasn't hungry."


	5. A Typical High School

Here comes the next chapter... And once again, I suck at titles!

Thanks a lot for the review, MauraFan228... I have to admit though, I'm an only child, so I was just guessing their feelings :P

Anyways.. ENJOY!!

**Chapter 5 – A Typical High School**

"Did you hear that Alisha Fonder is pregnant?"

"I heard she's pregnant with twins."

"I heard it's the French teacher who knocked her up."

"Someone from my study hall told me it was her own dad that is the baby daddy."

Abby listened to some of the popular girls gossiping while getting done changing for PE. As usual she had gone into one of the restrooms to change. She didn't want anyone to notice any of her bruises.

"Miss Wyczenski. How many times do I have to tell you? We have a dress code here." She turned around to see their new PE coach standing behind her with her arms crossed.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Bellville." She lifted up her sweater to reveal the white T-shirt they were all given as a part of their PE uniform. "I am wearing it, I'm just really cold. And I do have the shorts on underneath the sweat pants. And they're even black like the shorts." She couldn't help it, she just always started rambling when she got really nervous.

"But you're gonna get warm anyways. And how come no one else are cold?" Abby just shrugged her shoulders and looked down, not knowing what to say. "Fine. I'll let it go for this time. But don't let it become a habit." Even though she was starring at the floor, she could still feel everyone's eyes on her as the coach left, telling them to go to the big gym. Why couldn't they just have long sleeved uniforms?

* * *

"You sure are brave today, aren't you?" Abby spun around to see Samantha Taggart, cheer captain, the so called most 'desired' girl in the school, standing with her arms in her sides and with 3 'best' friends behind her. Abby didn't get how anyone could stand being friends with a girl like that, so she was pretty sure they only hung out with her to boost their popularity.

"Excuse me?" She started twirling a piece of her long golden blond hair around her finger.

"The way you spoke to Mrs. Bellville. You think you're something special? It's not that I care, but why should the rules be any different for you?" She was about to try to defend herself when she felt someone's arm around her shoulders.

"Leave her alone, girls." Abby looked at the floor embarrassed. Why had Luka seen it?

"Ehm, new boy, go mind your own business!" Samantha was standing with one hand on her hip, and the other she was using move her finger in front of her like crazy. "And in case you have to interrupt, you should take our side. You're too hot to hang out with the losers!" A small choir of chuckles and giggles were heard from the girls behind her.

"I don't think so. I like it where I am. Let's go, Abby!" Her heart started racing as Luka took her hand. He led her to the corner of the gym, where the coaches were getting ready to take attendance.

* * *

"I can't run." Abby whispered to Luka as the coaches were telling them about what they had to do for the day. She was still limping a little, and it hurt like hell to walk on her foot.

"Tell them. They'll understand." She just shook her head.

"Mrs. Bellville already hates me. And if I can't run I can't do anything since we're doing track. And they'll probably want a doctor's signature."

"Not for tripping on the stairs. Everyone trips some…"

"Kovac, Wyczenski! Anything you want to share with the rest of us?" Abby looked up surprised, like a deer caught in the headlight.

"Ehm, no ma'am! Sorry!" She felt her face turn a bright red as people stared at her.

"Okay everyone, start running!" Reluctantly the teenagers started running slowly around on the gym floor, as the coach waved Luka and Abby over to where she was.

"So do you guys wanna tell me what you were chatting about that was more important than my instructions?" Abby looked down about to say something when Luka cut in.

"She was asking me what to do since she twisted her ankle and can't run. But she doesn't want to not participate." Abby continued looking down, but she could feel the coach starring at her.

"Is that true, miss Wyczenski?" Abby just nodded as she looked up. "Well, I did see you limping a little before, so I guess there's nothing I can do about it. Go sit on the bleachers, and Kovac, start running."

"Thank you." Abby slowly walked over and sat down, watching the other students run around for what seemed like forever.

* * *

After school Abby had to go to work at McDonald's. Luka lived pretty close to it, so they walked together.

"So do you have any other siblings or is your brother the only one?" Abby looked up, tucking her hands in her pockets.

"Nah. It's just me and Eric." She shivered as the cold wind blew into her face. "Luckily. I don't think I could handle another brother or sister." She smiled to Luka who let out a small chuckle.

"So just you and Eric, huh? So are you living on the street or in an abandoned warehouse? Or did you inherit like a million bucks and are now living in a huge mansion with lots of house keepers?" Abby started laughing like crazy, punching Luka's shoulder.

"No, dummy. I meant me and Eric as the only kids. We live with our parents!" Luka just laughed as they continued walking in a comfortable silence.

"So how about you? Do you have any siblings?" Luka shrugged as he looked at the brunette next to him.

"Just me and my brother, Niko. And my parents." Abby nodded when suddenly Luka stopped up. "Dang that reminds me!" Abby stopped as well and looked at him confused.

"What?"

"I promised my mom to meet her at the hospital after school. Have to be there in about 15 minutes." Abby looked puzzled.

"Why do you need to go to the hospital?"

"My mom works there. At County. She's an attending, a psychiatrist." Abby nodded as she started jumping a little, trying to get warm. "I'm getting some kind of job there. Just a couple of days a week after school."

"Well you better get going then. If you don't wanna be late." Luka shrugged his shoulders.

"I guess you're right. See you tomorrow." Abby winced as Luka hugged her. He stepped back shocked and looked at her scared expression.

"I'm so sorry. Did I hurt you?" Abby shook her head to get out of her trance. He had hurt her a little because of her bruises, but it was nothing compared to the shock. She had never in a million years expected him to hug her. Not that she didn't like it or didn't want it, she just wasn't used to it and maybe even a little scared. She just didn't want to admit that.

"Oh, no, not at all." She needed to come up with a good excuse. Fast. "It's just that ehm… I put all my weight on my bad ankle." She sighed in relief when his face showed that he bought her 'lie'.

"Okay. That's good, cause I don't wanna hurt you." He gave her a small smile. "But I'll talk to you tomorrow, Abby."

"I guess. Bye." He waved a single time as he walked away. She took a deep breath and started walking. Why did life have to be so complicated?


	6. Scars

Thanks SOOO MUCH!! for the reviews :P

I guess it starts getting a bit more evil here... Please don't kill me (especially since it'll only get worse)!!

Well... ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 6 – Scars**

"So does anyone know the formula for respiration?" Abby was sitting in the back of the biology room. Her first class of the day. She was scribbling down weird patterns on the front of her notebook and not really paying attention. She hadn't slept at all last night and had been dead tired all day. Richard had made her stay at the factory till the middle of the night, where after he had made her clean the apartment since Maggie had left again and of course led out some of his anger on her, making her do things she did not want to think about. She could still feel the pain of the glowing cigarette burning against the skin on the small of her back and her shoulder blade.

"Miss Wyczenski!" Abby's head snapped up as the teacher hit her table with a stick. "Since you're too busy to listen, maybe you should teach the class. Now what's the respiration equation?" Abby bit her lower lip for a few seconds.

"C6H12O6 + 6 O2 → 6 CO2 + 6 H2O + Energy." When no one said anything she looked up to see the teacher looking at her amazed, along with the entire room staring at her.

"Where did you learn that? We haven't gone over that yet!" Abby shrugged her shoulders and looked at her table. "You know, Abby, you should be more active in class. Or at least pretend to be awake. It's not like you don't know your stuff." She went back to the blackboard and started rambling about respiration and photosynthesis, and Abby went back to drawing weird figures and trying not to fall asleep. She still had an entire day in front of her.

* * *

Abby walked into her world history class a couple of minutes early. She sat down on a chair in the back corner and dropped her head on her arms, crossed in front of her on the table. Maybe she could get like 1 minute of sleep.

"Mad, tired or just hating the world?" She took a deep breath and waited a few seconds before she turned her head, not even bothering to sit up.

"Kind of a mix." She closed her eyes and slowly sat up, yawning as she stretched her arms.

"I'll go with tired then." He put on one of his killer smiles as he sat down next to her. Normally she wouldn't have been able to resist smiling, but today she was simply just too tired. "Couldn't sleep?" Abby shrugged her shoulders, not knowing what to say. She couldn't really tell him the truth and her mind wasn't working well enough to come up with a good excuse. Luka opened his mouth say something, but was interrupted by the teacher entering the room. She sighed and turned to the blackboard, happy to not having to explain anything to Luka.

* * *

She blinked a few times before opening her eyes, trying to adjust to light coming from big screen. Neela stopped shaking her as she sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Sorry. You fell asleep." Abby looked at the girl sitting next to her and nodded. Neela was nice. She was one of the only people who didn't hate her and she never made fun of her or 'bullied' her. She actually even spoke to her sometimes, voluntarily, and Abby had even been to her house once in 5th grade when they did an English project together. Neela was the school nerd though. She was still only a freshman like Abby, but half of her classes were junior classes, and she was definitely going to graduate early.

"Thank you." They were watching some boring movie in English that Abby didn't even know the title of. The teacher was one of those people who didn't notice anything, so she probably would have been able to get away with sleeping. But they were going to have a test on the movie the day after, and she couldn't afford any more bad grades.

It wasn't that she wasn't smart. She was! She was taking algebra 2 which was a sophomore or higher class. But she never had time to study or do her homework, and she was often missing school because of Richard. But she still managed to keep okay grades.

"You didn't miss much though. Just the two main characters kissing." Abby just replied with a smile and looked at the screen, amazed that the entire class wasn't asleep by now.

* * *

Making sure no one were looking at her, she carefully rolled up her sleeve and studied her developing scar. No, it wasn't self-inflicted. Richard had made a 3 inch long cut on her lower right arm with his sharp, cracked nail the weekend before. He had blamed her for it breaking, since it happened while he was trying to tie her up. He really enjoyed humiliating her, so he thought it could be fun to tie her to a pole, naked, in a private room at his factory, while he raped her. She had been half fighting him though, which she apparently shouldn't have done. It had only resulted in him beating her way more than usual and even bringing in some of the other workers. He had never let them touch her, or at least not in that way, but they all knew what he did to her. He was usually bragging about it, so it had probably only turned him on to actually let them watch him doing it.

Abby sighed and closed her eyes. She carefully pushed her sleeve back down and put her thumb through the hole so that her scars and bruises wouldn't be revealed.

Things had gotten worse lately. Or well, Richard had. He made her life a living hell. Maggie's bipolar disorder was getting worse, which caused her to run away more often and she almost always locked herself in her room when she was finally home. Besides from the fact that this made Richard angrier, he also got drunk more often and his business wasn't going as well as usual. And of course all of this backfired at Abby. She couldn't remember when the last time was she went more than four days without being used as an object at which people could release their aggravations on. Or since this was Richard, his 'needs' and 'wants'.

And it was getting hard to handle. Both physically and emotionally. She tried not to let it get to her though, telling herself that she was used to it. And she was. Just not to this extent.

It had been forever since she had cried. She had stopped that a long time ago when she figured out that it didn't help anything, but instead only made it worse. But yesterday she had. She had cried. In front of Richard. She still wasn't sure if it had made him angrier or if he had enjoyed the fact that he had broken her. But one thing she knew for sure was that it killed her on the inside to know that he had. That he had in fact broken her. She had promised herself that she would never let that happen, but she had failed.

She sighed and leaned back in her chair to watch the rest of the movie. Maybe if she really concentrated on it she would be able to shut out all her thoughts and worries and only just watch this stupid movie.

* * *

"Hey Abby!" She stopped and turned around to see Luka running after her.

"I thought you were going to work." Luka shrugged.

"I am, but I was gonna ask you something first." Abby bent her head to the side and looked at him confused, waiting for him to ask her. She really just wanted to get home and get some sleep before the others came home.

"Okay?" Luka was fiddling with his fingers, not sure how to ask her.

"Well. I was thinking. What are you doing Saturday?" Abby blinked a couple of times, now even more confused.

"I have to go to work." A piece of her hair that had fallen out of her ponytail was flying around her face in the wind. She quickly removed it when it got stuck on her eyelashes.

"Okay. But maybe I can come pick you up when you get off, and we can go eat somewhere? I mean, if you want to." Abby looked down, but she could still feel Luka's eyes on her. She sure hadn't expected that.

"I don't know." Saturday was Richard's day off, and there was a big football match on TV. If the team he cheered for won, he'd want to 'celebrate' it with her. And if they lost, he would want to let his anger out on her. In either case, she'd lose.

"I know today was probably a really bad day to ask since you are so tired, but I just couldn't wait. And it doesn't have to be a date. It can just be a 'get-to-know-each-other-better' dinner thing." Abby looked up and a little smile formed on her lips. His accent was so strong when he was nervous. It was so cute.

"Well," Maybe she should go. What could happen that would be worse than she had tried before? She'd just get beaten up later in stead of sooner, and probably also a little bit worse, but right now she didn't care. She couldn't handle the thought of being Richard's punching bag all of Saturday, so maybe this would lighten up her weekend just a little bit. "I'd smell awfully bad of McDonalds."

A smile matching Abby's appeared on Luka's face, just bigger. "I don't care about that." He took a step away from her. "But I gotta go to work now. See you in school tomorrow." Abby just nodded as Luka ran away from her and started walking in the other direction.

She took a deep breath and started walking as well, praying that Maggie wasn't home so she could get some sleep.


	7. The 'First Date'

This chapter totally sucks.. and it's short... Hope it's not too bad though :P

And I'd LOVE some reviews!! I REALLY appreciate the ones I've got already, but more than 1 (or sometimes 2) review per chapter would make me SOOO happy :P

Anyways, ENJOY!!  
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**Chapter 7 – The 'First Date'**

Abby was standing in the bathroom when she heard the front door slam. A shiver ran trough her body. He had just left, why was he back already? He was in a hurry when he had left.

"I'm home!" Abby sighed and put the wet cloth back on her bloody hip as she realized it was just Maggie.

"In the bathroom. Might be a while." This was actually good. Normally she didn't like being with Maggie very much, but Richard would never touch here when her mom was around. Or well, almost never. She might even get away with not being home tonight.

"Okay honey. I'll be in the living room trying this new pattern that I found. I'll make myself one really pretty dress. " Abby didn't reply. She just winced at the pain of  
cleaning out her wound. She had woken up this morning by Richard pulling her out of her bed. She had come home from work really late the day before and had still been asleep when Eric had been picked up for soccer practice. Apparently one of Richard's customers had called him and wanted to meet up with him. He hadn't sounded too happy, so Richard had needed to get rid of some of his frustrations and anger problems before he met up with the customer. Too bad for Abby, it had meant her getting thrown, by 'accident', into the sharp table corner.

When she had finally gotten the bleeding on her hip to stop, she went to cover up the bruises in her face with make up. Luckily it wasn't too bad today. It was coverable. Her nosebleed had stopped pretty fast and the only thing really visible was a big, blue bruise above her right eyebrow.

It only took her a couple of minutes to cover it up completely. After all this time she had become an expert at it.

She hid the bloody cloth in a little box and put it in the back of the medicine cabinet. She didn't want to have to explain to Maggie why there was bloody laundry. Usually she did the laundry herself, but with Maggie one never knew.

Not having time to take a shower, she brushed her hair and made a low ponytail in the side, braiding it half of the way. It was required at work to have the hair up.  
Looking at herself in the mirror one last time to make sure there were no more visible bruises, she left the bathroom. Her mom was sitting in the living room sowing something on her sowing machine. Abby just shook her head. Maggie hadn't been home for days. She just came through the front door less than 10 minutes ago, and she was acting like she hadn't abandoned for family for almost a week. But Abby just sighed and picked up her purse. She was used to it and she no longer cared.

"Bye Maggie." Her mom stopped abruptly and turned around with a confused look on her face.

"Honey, where are you going? I just got here." Abby rolled her eyes and pushed herself away from the wall she was leaning against.

"It's called work, Maggie! But oh yeah, I forgot. You don't know about that!" She knew that she was pissing off her mom, but before she had a chance to be yelled at she hurried out of the building. Abby knew she was rude sometimes, but it was only towards Maggie. She had lost all respect towards her. Not only because of the things the disease did to her, but the fact that she had gone for such a long time without having noticed anything going on, kind of upset her. Hurt her. Not that she did anything to indicate something was wrong, but instead she tried as hard as she could to hide it

Sometimes she kind of wished people would figure it out, but that thought never lasted more than a minute tops. She knew it wouldn't do any good. No one would believe her and they would just start hating her even more. She was bad. She deserved to be punished. She always had. There was a reason for why this was happening to her, that made her deserve this. She knew that, and that's part of why she never told anyone. Plus she was scared. Very scared. Scared of Richard. Scared of everything. She couldn't imagine things differently, imagine her life in any other way than it was right now.

* * *

Luka was leaning up against the concrete wall when Abby exited the building from the back door.

"Hey." Abby smiled back as she tried to embrace herself from the cold. It was almost 7 pm, and since it was January in Chicago it was usually below freezing point at this time of the day.

"Hi." She started to slightly jump, trying to get warm. "How long have you been waiting?" He shrugged and looked at his watch.

"Not long. About 15, maybe 20 minutes." Abby's smile faded and she looked at him like he had gone insane.

"Shouldn't you be like, I don't know, freezing to death?" Luka started chuckling and shook his head.

"Naah, I've got some Scandinavian blood in me somewhere up the line. You know, the Vikings!" Abby rolled her eyes.

"Croatian and Scandinavian, huh? What's next? You're adopted by Korean people?"

"Actually, they're South African!" Abby just stared speechless at him until he burst out laughing. "I'm just kidding. I'm not adopted." Abby, who started smiling herself, punched Luka's shoulder.

"That was not funny!" They started slowly walking the street.

"So are you hungry? I'm personally starving!" Abby smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess." She was hungry, but her body had gotten used to not eating enough.

"And I was thinking, do you like Chipotle?" Abby turned her head to look at him and once again shrugged.

"Yeah, I do."

"Good. Because I've heard it should be really amazing, but I haven't tried it yet." She smiled at him while rolling her eyes, but not in the bad way.

* * *

Abby took a bite of her hot, spicy, beef burrito, enjoying the first foot for the day.

"You must be hungry. You look like you haven't eaten for days." She put her burrito down, swallowing the food still in her mouth.

"Well, I haven't eaten here in forever, and I absolutely love these burritos. Especially the really spicy ones." Luka smiled and grabbed a taco from the basket on the table.

"I have to admit that they are good." Abby didn't reply, she had picked up her burrito again and was taking huge bites, ignoring the fact that it practically burned her throat.


	8. Consequences

Thank you so much for the reviews... Once again, I really appreciate them :P

leiraguzon: I agree that she's getting hurt a lot, and I wish I could tell you it'll stop really soon, but unfortunately I can't. As I said in the very first chapter, this is my 'killer fic'. I had 19 chapters written before I even considered uploading it. It's only going to get worse. Hope it doesn't scare you away :P

That reminds me: WARNING!! This chapter is PRETTY EVIL!! (and kinda graphic, which is so unlike me... I'd never done graphic before, so I guess I must have been in a pretty killing mood that day :P)

Well, ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 8 – Consequences**

Abby was smiling to herself as she walked up the stairs to the apartment. She'd had so much fun. Way more than she was able to remember having had for many years. Nothing much had happened, they had just been talking about random things, and Luka had told her about Croatia.

He had insisted on walking her home, but after a long time of refusing, she had finally convinced him to let her walk home by herself.

She was still smiling as she unlocked the door and entered the dark apartment. She was on her way to the bathroom when someone grabbed her hair and yanked her back.

"What are you so happy about?" Abby's smile quickly disappeared and she was brought back to reality. Richard looked pissed. It was very late, and she wasn't supposed to have been out at all. She had thought this 'dinner' would make it up for whatever was coming, but the look on his face made her regret those thoughts right away. "The fact that you upset me real well? Because you love how I 'punish you'?" Scared, Abby shook her head. "Well then. If that's not it, then it's probably because you thought you could avoid me. Isn't that true?" Abby shut her eyes and bit her lip, knowing she was as good dead. "Well I'll tell you something, 'cup-cake'. No such luck!"

Abby carefully moved her head as Richard started stroking her cheek. "Where did my mom go?" Her voice was shaky and scared, and she was afraid of looking at the man in front of her.

"Oh she didn't go anywhere." He grabbed the bottom of Abby's sweater and lifted it over her head before throwing it into the corner. "She's in the bedroom, but she won't hear a thing. I made sure she's knocked out at least till tomorrow afternoon." Abby just stared scared at him, not really understanding what he meant. "I had to sedate her with a couple of sleeping pills since she couldn't keep quiet during the game." She shivered as he pulled off her shirt, exposing her to the cold air.

"Now, let's get down to business." Abby tried stepping away from him, but she didn't have a chance before he put his strong hand on top of her head and pushed her down to her knees. While holding her down with one hand, making sure she didn't try to get away, he used the other hand to unzip his pants.

Abby swallowed hard, knowing what she had to do. And she hated it. This was the worst thing he did to her, and he usually only did it when he was really angry.

* * *

Abby could hear Richard moaning. She knew he was about to cum and really wanted to pull away, but his hands kept her trapped. It only took a few seconds before she could feel the sticky liquid enter her mouth. She really felt like puking, but his hands still held her and she knew he wanted her to swallow it, so she did. But she could still feel the liquid in her throat when she started coughing like crazy, enough to make her eyes teary and throw up the sperm along with some of the food from earlier, right there on the living room floor. She hated it. It was embarrassing, really embarrassing. Not just the fact that she threw up, but the things he made her do.

She knew Richard wouldn't be happy about that, so before he could say anything she ran to the kitchen to get some paper towel and quickly returned to wipe it off the floor. She could feel Richards eyes on her the entire time, but refused to look up.

"Abby!" She turned around to look at him as she was on her way back to the kitchen to throw away the paper. He was just sitting there on the couch like nothing was going on. "Bring a fork with you." She didn't even nod. She just did as he told her to.

* * *

With one arm in front of her, trying to cover up her almost naked upper body, she handed him the fork. She started shivering as he was just starring at her, like he was trying to figure out what to do.

"Let's go!" He got up quickly and pulled her after him into her own bedroom. "Now get down on your knees, facing the wall!" He pointed at the middle of the floor, and she did what she was told. As he unhooked her bra, she could feel her eyes tearing up again, internally cursing at Luka for convincing her to go out with him.

A few minutes passed without anything happening, so she slowly turned around, knowing it was probably a really bad idea. But Richard was just looking at her with his arms crossed.

"This feels wrong." Abby bit her lip confused. He never got bad consciousness. "Get up again. Take off your pants and lay down on your bed, face down." Now it made more sense. She got up carefully, begging Richard with her eyes. He didn't care though, he just tapped his foot on the floor, waiting for her to obey his orders.

"Please." He let a little chuckle escape as he watched her scared face. He knew what she was thinking.

"I won't fuck you from behind. I hadn't even thought about that. But if you don't do as I tell you to, I might have to reconsider that." Humiliated, she started unzipping her jeans, but she barely got them off before Richard ripped off her underwear as well.

"Good. Now lay down!" She wiped her eyes for the few tears and slowly walked to her bed, laying down and looked across the room to Eric's bed.

"Sure took you long enough." She shut her eyes as she felt him sitting down on top of her. The feeling of four cold, pointy pieces of steal against her upper back turned into pain as Richard dug it into her flesh, penetrating her skin as he ran it down her back with all his power.

Abby was biting the pillow while tears were streaming down her face. Richard might have done many painful things to her, but this pretty much topped it all off. She was shaking in pain, wanting to scream but knew better than to do so.

"Aww, did that hurt?" He removed the fork from her back and Abby relaxed her body a little, even though she could still feel the sharp pain. She slightly nodded her head, knowing he hated it when she didn't reply.

"Well too bad!" She soon felt the fork against her skin again, this time a little lower and on the other side of her back. This time he moved it diagonally, and it hurt just as much.

When the fork was once again removed, Abby stayed in the same position, too scared of moving, with tears still running down her cheeks. A shiver ran through her body as he started slightly laughing.

He slowly removed his weight from her body. "Turn around!" Abby's eyes grew wide and it took her a couple of seconds before she did as he said. She gulped and looked pleadingly at him, as new fresh tears ran down her face. Not only because she was scared, but also because it hurt extremely much to lay on the open wounds, the ones that would cause the sheets to become very bloodstained. But he just looked satisfied at her, with a huge grin on his face, as he ran the fork down her stomach, tracing every bone on her skinny body with it.

"Don't worry, 'sweetie', I've got another good way of using this." He pulled out a lighter from his pocket, lighting it and held the fork over the orange flame till it almost glowed. Abby's eyes widened as he slowly inched the now burning fork closer to her shaking body. She bit her lip till it bled as the burning feeling hit her upper, inner thigh. This was soon followed by multiple other places though.

"I hope this teaches you to behave." Abby nodded as she tried wiping away the tears that simply wouldn't stop falling. She had definitely learned her lesson.

"Now, just one thing left to do." Abby knew exactly what he was talking about as he got up and pulled down his pants. She didn't really care though. This was gonna be the least painful thing he'd do to her. It was, however, more painful that usually, since the wounds on her back kept rubbing against the bed sheets.

When he was done he just got up and grabbed his stuff, leaving the room without saying anything, not even looking at her. Abby was too paralysed to do anything for a while, but after laying in the same position for what felt like hours, she crawled under the duvet, not even bothering to put on clothes first. She turned around so she was facing the wall, laying on her side so her wounds wouldn't hurt more than necessary. She should really go clean them out to make sure they wouldn't get infected, but she was simply too tired plus they were in places that were hard to reach.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying to think of anything besides what had just happened.


	9. It's hard to keep secrets

Thanks A LOT for the reviews!!

Here's the new chapter (I seriously need to update slower, cause can't keep up with the writing of them :P)  
Kinda boring I guess... But ENJOY!!

**Chapter 9 – It's Hard To Keep Secrets**

"So you guys are gonna have to come watch me play at the regionals!" It was Sunday evening and they were eating dinner. Eric had been dropped off after a soccer match not long before, and was now rambling excited about having won. Abby wasn't really paying attention though. She was just slightly playing with her potatoes, taking a little bite every now and then.

"Of course we will honey. You know how much we love watching you play! Isn't that right, Abby?" She looked up as she got pulled out of her thoughts.

"Oh, sure." She wasn't even sure what they had been talking about. Or well, she knew it revolved around soccer, it always did if Eric was rambling, but she had no idea what Maggie had asked her about.

"You alright, sis? You're very quiet." Abby bit her lip and nodded. Eric actually looked concerned.

"I'm fine." It was like that phrase had become her baseline. She used it so often that you'd think it would be printed on her forehead.

"Are you sure, honey? Eric is right, and you do look pretty out of it." Abby looked down at her food, not really sure what to do or what to say. But she could feel Richard's eyes on her, waiting for an explanation, so she knew she had to come up with something.

"I said I'm fine. I'm just very tired." She mentally started beating herself up over that comment. She had been trained in lying, so why did she make up such a stupid reply? Couldn't she have come up with something a little better? Something that didn't sound like such a bad excuse?

"I don't know, babe, you look more sad to me." Abby opened her mouth, about to defend herself, but before she could, Eric interrupted her.

"She just needs a big hug." He threw his arms around her, but Abby just winced and pushed herself away. The wounds were still pretty much open and sore as hell. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath, trying to compose herself again. When she opened her eyes she saw everyone looking confused at her, including Richard, but that was just acting.

"I ehm… I bruised my shoulder at work yesterday." The second the words left her mouth she bit her tongue. That definitely beat the other comment in stupidity. She could probably win some kind of prize for telling the worst lies.

"Oh honey, let me see…"

"No!" She practically screamed, earning weird stares from everyone around the table. "I mean, Richard looked at it yesterday when I came home. It's no big deal." Abby looked hopeful at her mom, silently praying that she'd believe her and let go of the subject. Maggie looked at Richard for reassurance, and he nodded.

"Yeah, there's barely even a bruise there. I guess she's just very sensitive." Abby sighed, relieved that Richard hadn't decided to make this harder on her. She wanted to say that she wasn't as sensible as he said though, but knew it was better not to. It was actually better if Maggie thought she was as fragile as Richard made her sound, that way she'd get away with having bruises more easily. But at the same time it killed her. She wasn't very sensitive or fragile, and she knew that he knew that. She bit her lip, hating the awkward silence.

"I'm not really hungry. Can I be excused? I need to go do my homework." Maggie looked at her for a little while before nodding. "Thanks." She poured the rest of her food into the trash can and put her plate in the sink, before walking into her room.

* * *

She had just gotten her algebra book out of her bag when Richard came into her room, carefully closing the door after him.

"What do you want?" She opened up her book, finding the page she needed. She didn't even look up till she felt him right next to her. "They're right outside the door, they'll hear it if you try to do something. Eric could walk in any second."

"Don't worry, I wont. I just have to look like I care, you know. And oh yeah, nice job with hiding it out there." Abby just bit her lip and looked away. "Turn around and lift up your shirt." She took a deep breath, hating the way he looked at her. "Let me see it!" She did as he told her to without hesitation, knowing it wouldn't do anything good. "That's nothing!" Abby didn't reply. She was too busy biting her lip in pain as he traced his fingers down the wounds, reopening the ones that had already closed up.

"Anyways, get back to your homework. And don't forget work tomorrow!" She nodded and pulled her shirt back down as Richard left the room. Pretending like everything was absolutely normal, she found her pencil and started solving exponential equations by using synthetic division.

* * *

It didn't take her long to finish her homework. As she put away her books she could still hear the others eating and having a good time. She wished she could go out there and join them, have fun around the dinner table like any other normal family. But she couldn't. They weren't. They weren't normal at all. She wasn't normal.

"Hey Abby!" She looked up as her brother burst into her room. "We're going out for ice cream. Wanna join us?" She bit her lip. It all depended on whether or not Richard was going.

"Is it just you and Maggie?"

"Nope, Richard is coming as well." Abby sighed in relief and shook her head. This way she could get a little time for herself, not having to worry about Richard or Maggie.

"Nah, I think I'll skip it this time. Have a lot of homework to catch up on." He gave her a pouting face, one she usually couldn't resist. "I'm positive, Eric. But go, have fun. Enjoy your ice cream." This time he shrugged.

"Okay. See you, Abby!" She gave him a smile as he put on his baseball cap the wrong way, trying to be cool, and left their room.

* * *

It only took a couple of minutes before she heard the front door slam. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath and fell back onto her bed. She winced slightly, having forgotten all about the fork wounds for a few seconds. She did that sometimes, forgot about her wounds. Or maybe it was just her brain's very own way of getting through the day, to voluntarily be in denial about the pain.

She stayed in that position for a couple of minutes, but she knew she didn't have very much time till they returned, so she got up to go clean the kitchen. It wasn't that she wanted to clean it, but knowing her family she could be pretty sure that it would be one big mess.

And exactly as she had expected, no one ad even removed their plates. Sighing, she carried everything to the kitchen, wiped off the table and did the dishes. But as she was about to put the last silverware in the drawer, she accidentally knocked the big knife off the counter with her elbow. Putting the towel she'd used to dry the things with next to the sink, she bend down and picked it up. She stopped halfway on the way back up though. The light from above the counter reflected itself on the knife, making the sharp blade shine in a very hypnotizing way. It looked so inviting. She wasn't exactly sure what kind of thoughts were going through her head, but she knew they weren't very good, and desperately needed to get rid of them.

She shook her head, placing the knife on the table. She needed to snap out of whatever was going through her head.


	10. You never know what to expect

Hey guys!!

Here comes the new chapter... hope you enjoy!!

And again, thank you SOOOO much for the reviews :P  
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**Chapter 10 – You Never Know What To Expect**

"Okay, kids. I must say, I'm not very pleased with the overall results." Abby looked down at her calendar and started crossing out all the days that had already gone by, as the teacher handed out their math tests.

"Are you serious? 26 ?" She tried to ignore the other students in the classroom, concentrating really hard on the growing amount of black crosses in her agenda.

"Well, Samantha, I couldn't really curve them since someone got over 100 , now could I?" Abby bit her lip as the teacher approached her table in the back row.

Without looking, she grabbed the test from her teacher, but tensed up when he didn't let go of it. "Great job, Abby!" She looked up at him surprised and he let go of the test. He hadn't said it very loud, so only the people sitting closest to her had heard it. Nervous, she looked at the upper right corner of the front page. She bit her lip, trying to keep from smiling. With a neon red color, surrounded by a thick ring in the same bright color, was a big '105 '. And here she had been absolutely positive that she would totally flunk it. Especially since the teacher had made them sound so horrible.

* * *

"I heard some rumors." Abby slammed her locker shut and turned around, leaning up against it. Somehow she'd expected Luka to show up at her locker. "About this amazing girl in algebra II." She smiled but rolled her eyes.

"Let me guess. Something about how they now hate me even more and are trying to come up with the best way to ruin my life or kill me? Or no, wait. Probably something along the lines with 'I only passed the test because I slept with the teacher'. Am I any close?" Abby started tapping her foot on the floor and crossed her arms, waiting for him to answer.

"Has anyone ever told you how cute you look when you ramble?" She stopped the tapping and leaned her head to the side, giving him a dead stare.

"You're stalling." She continued to stare at him without even blinking.

"Okay fine. You really wanna know?" Biting her lip, she nodded. "That last theory of yours was as good as precise." Even though she would never admit it, he could see the hurt and pain in her eyes before she looked down at her shoes. He hated seeing her like that, hated the way everyone in school treated her, but there was nothing he could do to make it better and Abby just plainly refused to acknowledge it.

"Anyways, you should go to lunch. Your brother is waiting for you." Her voice was weak and she sounded sad, but he could hear that she tried to hide it.

"Hey!" Abby looked up. "You can come with us, you know." She just shook her head and started walking towards the entrance with him.

"No thanks. You're going with his friends. They don't like me."

"You say that about everyone, Abby, and it's not true."  
"Oh yeah?" They pushed open the double doors and walked into cold Chicago air. "Then while you're eating, ask Carter what he thinks about me. And then you can be pretty sure that the rest of the group feels the exact same way." Luka was about to protest, he hated that she had so little self confidence, but Abby cut him off. "Now go!" She nodded towards the group of teenage boys who were standing at the parking lot. "They're waiting."

* * *

"We're home!" Luka went to his room and put down his bag, before joining his parents and brother in the kitchen. The table was all set and everything was ready for dinner, so he sat down on his normal seat.

"So how was school, boys? And soccer practice.?" Luka shrugged and took a bite of his pork chop.

"Okay I guess. Nothing out of the ordinary." Luka's brother started laughing, causing everyone to look at him.

"Luka's got a girlfriend." Luka sent his brother a dead stare as both of his parents looked interested at him, feeling his cheeks growing red of embarrassment.

"She's not my 'girlfriend', Niko. She's just my really good friend who happens to be a girl!"

"And you want me to believe that? Oh please! You flirt like non-stop." Luka took a sip of his water, trying to stay calm.

"Fine, I like her, okay? And I'm pretty sure she likes me too. It's just still too early."

"Boys, stop the fighting. You can save that till after the dessert!" Luka looked down and picked up his fork, sticking it into a piece of potato.

"Sorry, tata!" He really wanted to quit this conversation, or well, discussion as well.

"Yeah, sorry. But you should really stay away from her, Luka. She's not good for you."

"Niko, it's enough!" Luka had almost dropped his fork, and was now staring speechless at his brother.

"What I'm saying is, half of the girls from our school has got a crush on you. You can get whoever you want!" Their mom put her silverware down and stared mad at her oldest son.

"Niko, if you don't stop right now, you'll be washing the dishes for two weeks!" That made him shut up. He gave Luka an evil, brotherly smile, and started eating his food.

"Well I want Abby!"

* * *

Abby had dropped Eric off at a friend's house so they could easily get to the early practice the next morning. She was happy for Eric, he had lots of friends and got to be a way from home pretty often, but at the same time she hated that he wasn't there. Not only because it kept her safe when he was there, but also because she really cared about him. He was the only one from her family that actually meant something to her.

She slammed the front door and, after hanging up her coat, sat down at the living room table. Putting her hair up in a messy bun, she took out her homework and put it on the table.

It didn't take long before Richard came out of the bathroom. Abby looked up, but quickly looked back down and continued what she was doing.

"What's that?" To Abby's relief, he didn't seem drunk.

"Homework." She started chewing on the end of her pencil, trying to figure out what to write.

"What kind of homework?"

"A survey for social studies. We have to fill out some papers about ourselves." She started tapping the pencil on the table, completely lost.

"So what question are doing right now?" He opened the fridge and pulled out some leftovers from the day before.

"I have to write three good qualities about myself." She didn't really want to share this kind of information with him, but she knew she had to.

"Let's see. You're really good at giving blow-jobs, you're good at being quiet when asked to, and… Oh yeah, you taste good!" Abby just bit her lip, trying to ignore Richard's comment. There was no way in hell she'd ever put that on. She'd take whatever punishment he could come up with to make sure of that.

* * *

Abby put her hair brush back into the cabinet and closed it. It wasn't very late, but she was kind of tired, and there wasn't much to do. Starting to braid her hair, she left the bathroom.

"Hey Abby!" She stopped walking and turned around to face her step dad.

"Yeah?" He was sitting in front of the TV, watching some kind of wrestling show.

"Did you remember to do the dishes and change all the bed sheets?" Abby bent her head forward, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, I did."

"Good! On your way to bed? She shifted on her feet, finding it creepy every time he tried making small talk. Or well, not really small talk, but not-being-violent talk.

"Yes."

"Oh, okay." He turned his head so he was looking at her. "You sure you don't want to have some fun first?" She bit her lip and looked away. This day had been good so far, he had actually seemed 'normal', not having hurt her in any way. But of course she should have known that wouldn't last an entire day.

"I'd really rather not." Her voice was small and weak, but he still heard it, so he just looked questionable at her. "Not today. Please. I'm really tired." He stayed silent, which pretty much freaked Abby out. "I'll make up for it one day. I promise!" Richard turned back to his wrestling match.

"Okay." Abby's head snapped up. She didn't know if she should believe what she'd just heard, but she didn't want to question him. So after being frozen to the spot for multiple seconds, she started walking away, hurrying to her room.


	11. A Whole New Feeling

Here comes the next chapter... YAY! (Just kidding :P)  
Anyways... It's a bit short and not really evil... Just - Luby time :P (And yes, I know Richard's an ass, and he will 'be gone' at some pont, but can't tell you when)

Well... ENJOY!! And don't forget to review.. I love getting them :P So thanks to the few of you who DO review :)

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**Chapter 11 – A Whole New Feeling**

"We could always do one of those volcanoes." Abby gave him a dead stare as Luka started chuckling.

"Luka, volcanoes are 5th grade science projects. Not 9th!" She couldn't help but start laughing along though.

They had gone to the library after school to come up with a science project, and so far they hadn't gotten anything done besides fooling around and gotten on everyone else's nerves. Even the librarian had had to tell them to quiet down multiple times.

"Okay. This is useless. We're not gonna come up with anything today!" Luka nodded in agreement and put away the random books they'd found.

"Maybe we should just both try to think of something, and then share our ideas tomorrow at school." Abby pushed the double doors open and they walked out into the cold, but sunny air.

"Sounds like a plan." She took a deep breath. The only reason Richard had allowed her not to work today was because she would be doing school stuff. He might be mean to her, but he wanted her to keep up with school and seem just a little bit normal, so that nobody would suspect anything being abnormal with her home life. "Look, I really don't feel like going home right now. Are you in a hurry?" Luka stopped walking and looked and her.

"Oh, why not?" She bit her lip. She couldn't really tell him the real reason, so she'd have to come up with something.

"Ehm. My mom's got some friends over and ehm, it's just…"

"No need to explain. I know the feeling." A little smile crept upon Abby's lips, happy that he believed her lie. "Wanna take a walk by the lake?" She looked up at him with half shut eyes since the sun was so bright.

"I'd like that."

* * *

"Seriously, that's the most retarded joke ever!" Luka joined in on Abby's laughing. "Is all Croatian jokes that lame?" He took another bite of one of the chocolate chip cookies he had brought from home.

"I don't know. To be honest, I don't know that many." Abby smiled but stopped walking.

"Look. Isn't it beautiful?" Luka looked the same direction Abby was. The setting sun was reflecting itself in lake Michigan, causing hundreds of different colors to play on the quiet water. Luka nodded, but then remembered that she couldn't hear that.

"Yeah. It really is." He wasn't just talking about the Lake though. He turned to look at Abby and a little smile formed on his face.

"Come here." He turned her around so she was looking at him. "You've got something…" He put his hand on the side of her face and carefully wiped the cookie crumps away from her cheek with his thumb. Abby bit her lip. She tensed a little by his touch. Not because she didn't like it, but more like the opposite.

Luka couldn't help but notice how her eyes sparkled in the afternoon light. Or wait, it was the same sparkle they always had, it just stood out in a way he hadn't noticed before now.

Even though the crumps were long gone, he still gently stroke her cheek. And to his surprise she didn't complain.

Without really knowing what he was doing, he slowly leaned down towards her. Abby's eyes were closed as Luka's lips gently touched hers. It felt like something inside her was on fire. But in a good way. She'd never kissed anyone before, hadn't even imagined ever doing so, but she was surprised at how amazing it felt.

Or well, she had been 'kissed' before. By Richard. When he was drunk. But she chose to think of those times as though they'd never happened.

And besides, this was special. She did this because she wanted to, because it felt right. This was Luka.

It felt like everything was moving in slow motion. So even though it felt like their kiss could last forever, it felt way too short when they finally pulled back.

But when reality kicked back in, Abby looked down at the ground. She felt embarrassed, and she was kind of mad at herself for letting this happen, for falling for Luka. She couldn't deal with dating, and it wouldn't be fair to him. But most of all she was mad because she'd actually liked it. Enjoyed it.

Biting her lip she tried avoiding his gaze.

"Abby…"

"Luka, I'm sorry. This shouldn't have happened." She felt his hand under her chin.

"Hey!" Even though she really tried, she wasn't able to resist it when he carefully lifted her face so she was looking at him. "I don't think it was that bad." Abby just continued biting her lip while staring at Luka, not sure what to say.

"Look. I know you weren't expecting that to happen, and neither was I. But it did, and I don't regret it." She looked away, but she could still feel Luka staring at her. She knew he was expecting her to say something, anything.

"Luka, I…" She closed her eyes, unsure of what to say. "I can't do this. It wouldn't be fair to you." When Luka didn't say anything, Abby forced herself to look up.

"What are you talking about?"

"Look, Luka, I'm screwed up. You're a great guy, you deserve way better. You can get anyone you want, and I don't want to hold you back." She bit her lip, but when he didn't say anything, she continued. "I'm not into all the touching, nothing personal, I just don't like it. And you're a boy! You're gonna want… Sex… And I'm not gonna be able to give you that!" She felt her eyes get watery, and quickly looked away. She couldn't believe the things she had just said. They had been really difficult to share, and she wasn't sure if she felt relieved or exposed now that they were out.

"Abby!" He put his hands on each of her shoulders. "Look at me!" Swallowing hard, she carefully turned her head, noticing how intense he was staring at her. For a while both of them stayed quiet, until a cold wind pulled them out of their trance.

"First of all, I do not want sex, so that's totally irrelevant. And no, Abby! You're not screwed up!" She looked away as she felt a tear slide down her cheek. Of course he'd say she wasn't screwed up. He didn't know her. He had no idea what her life was about. What was going on in her mind. How scared she was of everything, all the time. How broken she was, even though she'd never admit it.

Once again he placed his hand beneath her chin and forced her to face him. He looked straight into her eyes, making it impossible for her to look away. And when he slowly leaned towards her to kiss her again, she didn't protest.


	12. Hurt

Here's a new chapter... The longest one so far :P

I'm waiting for ER to finish downloading... Damn it takes forever!!

But anyways, ENJOY!! And thanks for the reviews :)

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**Chapter 12 – Hurt**

"I hate you!" Abby slammed her door and threw herself on her bed, hugging her pillow tight. But as she expected, it didn't take long before her mom came bursting into her room.

"Don't you dare talk to your mother like that!" Abby rolled her eyes and sat up.

"You're not my mother, Maggie." Abby knew that would tick her off, but right now she didn't care. At all. If she really was her mom, then she would trust what Abby said.

"Abby, don't you dare go there! I am your mother whether you like it or not! And I will not allow this rudeness. Looks like we need some discipline in this house, young lady!" She was pointing her finger at Abby, like she was some little kid who'd spilled pop all over the computer.

"You might be my mother by blood, but besides from that you mean nothing to me!" Somehow Abby enjoyed seeing the hurt in her mother's face, but she didn't show it. It was nothing compared the pain she'd caused her.

Maggie opened her mouth about to talk back to her daughter, but was interrupted by the sound of Richard coming home.

"Don't think I'm done just because he's home. We'll finish this conversation later." Letting out a breath she fell back down on her bed as Maggie went out to greet Richard. She could hear her mom crying, and she had absolutely no doubt that it was because of her.

* * *

It had always been Abby's job to do the laundry, but today Maggie had come home and decided to do it. Usually Abby wouldn't mind, but Maggie had smelled the alcohol in some of her clothes, and right away she started blaming Abby for drinking, sneaking out to go to parties, and other things like that.

Abby had tried to explain to her that all those things she was accused of weren't true, but she simply wouldn't listen. Whenever she set her mind to something, it would be as good as impossible to change it. Her mom was stubborn enough as it was already, and the disease only made it worse. It made it as good as impossible to be with her for more than a couple of minutes before she was getting too much on your nerves than you were able to handle.

* * *

The sound of the main door slamming brought her out of her thoughts. She was barely able to sit up before Richard came into her room with a mad look on his face. Abby felt her heart beating faster as she backed up against the wall. Not only was she scared about what he was going to do with her, but she was also thinking about Luka. She was supposed to meet up with him later, and she was afraid that whatever Richard had in mind would somehow make that impossible.

"Nice job, Abby. You caused your mom to be even more freaked out than she usually is." She bit her lip as he slowly moved closer.

"I'm sorry. I…" She was cut off by a hand hitting her face. She was used to that and didn't really care about it. Except this time it wasn't a slap like it usually was, but a fist. Surprised, and in shock, she moved her hand to her burning, upper cheek. She bit her lip, trying to ignore the burning, stinging pain, but it was impossible to prevent tears to appear in her eyes.

She looked up at her step dad, expecting him to continue what he'd started. But he was just starring at her with his arms crossed.

"Maggie will be back soon. She just needed some air after the way you upset her." Abby looked down, suddenly a bit more calm, if that was even possible. "Now, I promised her I'd talk some sense into you. So do you think you'll be able to behave, or do I need to beat it into you?" Abby just shook her head, speechless, but apparently that wasn't good enough for Richard. He grabbed her skinny upper arm and dug his fingers into it. If Abby hadn't known any better, she'd think the fingers would penetrate her skin, along with her flesh and her bones, and maybe even go all the way through her arm.

"I'll behave!" Her voice was desperate and it cracked halfway through the sentence.

"Good girl!" He let go of her arm and she started rubbing it with her other hand, trying to ease the pain. "Now, go be useful! I think there are a few dishes in the sink that needs cleaning. And if not, the living room could always use some vacuum cleaning." With Richard still staring at her, she slowly got out of her bed. She slightly nodded and walked towards the kitchen, soon followed by Richard.

* * *

It wasn't long before Maggie returned. Abby was standing in the kitchen, cleaning the counter when she felt her standing behind her.

"Got anything to say?" Abby bit her lip as she put down the washcloth.

"I'm sorry," She took a deep breath. She really didn't want to say this, but she knew she had to. "Mom." She started playing with her nails as she looked down at the now clean counter.

"Look at me, Abby!" She bit her lip as she turned around, not wanting her mom to see her face. She could feel that it was swollen, and as she expected, Maggie gasped.

"What happened." Abby looked down, not sure what to say. So she was actually kind of relieved when Richard entered the kitchen.

"Well I tried talking with her, but she kept on being rude and talking back. I didn't really mean to hit her, but she asked for it herself." She could feel herself shrinking under Maggie's gaze. She'd somehow expected Maggie to be on her side, but the look she gave her was confusing.

"Okay." This made Abby's head snap up. "I hope it taught you your lesson." If she thought she was in pain before, then she felt terminal now. This was like a slap in the face, way more painful than the fist. She looked at Maggie with a combination of shock, hurt and disbelieve in her eyes.

"But, mom…"

"Oh so now you can call me 'mom'?" Abby bit her lip as she felt a tear slide down her cheek, soon followed by another. Knowing that she was about to break down, she pushed past the both of them and ran through the apartment, out into the street. Into the cold, windy, February evening air. But she didn't care. Even though she was only wearing a thin, long-sleeved t-shirt and pants, and it felt like the tears running down her cheeks were freezing to ice, she couldn't feel it. She already felt numb.

She might not care about her mom, but the fact that she was okay with her husband beating her own daughter hurt her more than anything. If she was okay with the hitting, then she probably wouldn't care about the other things either. Maggie probably even thought she deserved it.

She bit her lip as she tried to wipe away her tears. But it was impossible since they kept on coming.

She started running towards the park where she was supposed to meet up with Luka. It would only take her about 20 minutes and she had more than an hour, but right now that didn't matter.

When she got to the park, she sat down on the nearest bench she could find. She backed up into the corner and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her forehead on them as the tears continued falling. She didn't care that she was sitting alone in a park, late at night, with almost no people around. She didn't care about anything right now.

* * *

"Abby?" She looked up at the sound of Luka's voice. She had completely lost track of time. "Oh God, are you alright?" She quickly dried her cheeks, remembering that she probably looked horrible. "What happened?" Abby just nodded and looked away, not sure what to say.

"I'm fine. It's nothing." But she knew he wouldn't believe that. She wouldn't even have been able to convince herself the way she just said it. She felt his hand on her back, which caused her to wince.

"I'm not buying that." He sat down on the bench next to her. "If that was true, you wouldn't be sitting on a bench in a park in the middle of the winter while not wearing clothes." It wasn't until he said it that she realized how cold she was. Her whole body started shivering, but she tried not to show it. "You wouldn't have tear strained cheeks, and you definitely wouldn't have a huge black eye!" When she looked up she saw Luka taking off his coat and soon after felt him laying it on top of her.

"No, Luka. You'll get cold." She started taking it off, but he put his big hands on top her small, freezing, shaky ones and stopped her.

"I've got 2 huge sweaters on. You need it more or you'll get hypothermic! Your lips are already bluish, and you're shaking like you were just pulled out of Lake Michigan!" Knowing he was right, she tightened the coat around her and looked away.

"Thanks." She felt Luka starting to rub her upper arm where Richard had caused some sore bruises. She bit her lip, but forced herself not to wince in pain.

"So are you gonna tell me what has happened, or do I have to guess?" His voice was firm and full of concern, but also very demanding. Abby shrugged her shoulders.

"It's nothing, Luka. Let it go!"

"Abby!" She tried breathing through her nose since her throat hurt too much due to the freezing cold air, but it was stopped up from crying.

"It's… I was fooling around with my brother. Got hit by his elbow." Luka was quiet, so Abby forced herself to look up. He was looking at her with a combination of disbelieve and concern. And she didn't blame him. Her excuse had sounded more like a question than a statement.

"Okay." Abby's eyes widened, surprised that Luka believed her. "Let's say that's what happened for now, and then maybe later, you can tell me the real story." Abby looked down. It made sense now. But she didn't know if she should understand the last thing he said as a question or a statement.


	13. Lies

New chapter...  
Not as long, but well...  
Thanks for the reviews, they make me so happy :P And don't worry, Luka will find out... I'm further ahead in the story, and I'm at the point where he finds out.. Just kinda stuck (DAMN I have writers' blocks)

Anyways... ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 13 – Lies**

Abby put her pop down without looking up. They were sitting in the corner in a Taco Bell not far from the park. She was still holding Luka's coat tightly around her, glad that the place was as good as empty.

She had wanted to go home earlier, but Luka had insisted on bringing her somewhere warm, and wouldn't let her leave until she got some food, which she was secretly very grateful for.

"You're very quiet today:" She quickly looked up at him before turning her attention back to the straw in her pop, which she was playing with.

"I'm sorry…"

"Hey, no need to apologize." She looked up as she felt him put his hand on top of hers.

"So are you gonna tell me what really happened?" Biting her lip, she turned her head and looked out of the window, out into the dark night.

"I already told you." Her voice was shaky, so she took a deep breath. "And then my mom came home and told me that my cousin, who used to be my best friend when we were younger, died in a car crash yesterday." She slowly turned to look at Luka, to see if he bought her lie. "That's why I was crying." She looked down at her hand, which Luka was still holding.

"I just stormed out of the house." She once again bit her lip as she saw Luka's sympathetic expression. Somehow she wished he hadn't believed it. She hated lying, and this was definitely a big one. Why couldn't she have come up with something else? Something smaller? Something not involving the death of self invented people!

"Oh." Abby looked down, kind of embarrassed. "I'm so sorry!" She shook her head as good as she could without it hurting. The hard hit added to the freezing cold had given her a major headache.

"It's okay, Luka." He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by Abby getting up.

"Look, I really have to get home." She didn't want to leave him, but knew she had to. Other wise there would be a big chance of her accidentally revealing something, and that wouldn't be good. She took off the coat and gave it back to a speechless Luka. "See you later." She as good as ran out of the building and hurried down the road before Luka even had a chance of getting out of the booth. She didn't want him to follow her, and she definitely didn't want him to see where she was going, where she lived.

She tightened her arms around her as she ran. Rubbed them, trying to get warm. But the freezing cold air made her throat sting like crazy, so she was forced to stop to catch her breath. As she leaned up against the cold concrete building, she felt something cold on her nose. She looked up just as it started pouring down. Or well, more like hailing like crazy. Small, painful pieces of ice.

* * *

Abby sat down on the stairs, outside of their apartment and put her head in her hands. Her whole body was shaking like crazy, and her head was banging. She couldn't remember ever having felt this sick before.

She looked at the door in front of her and shuddered just by the thought of going in there. Entering those doors would be a nightmare, and she already felt like crap. Like hell.

The sound of the main door down at the bottom of the stairs slamming made her jump. It didn't take long before her neighbour was standing next to her. He looked down, but Abby didn't even bother trying to hide her face or the fact that she was soaked and crying. She knew he wouldn't care at all. When she was younger this really nice lady had been living next to them. Sometimes her and Eric had hung out in there, played with her grandkids when they were visiting or just kept her company without Maggie or Richard ever knowing. But she had moved to a nursing home a few years later, and these two drug addict brothers had moved in.

She shivered once again as the neighbour's door slammed. Taking a deep breath, she tried wiping away the water on her forehead. The quicker she went in there, the quicker she'd get it over with.

She bit her lip as she stood up, her legs still shaking underneath her. Taking another deep breath she grabbed the door knob, waiting for a few seconds before pushing it down. She let out the air she didn't know she was holding, relieved that the door was unlocked. At least she wouldn't have to suffer the humiliation of having to knock on the door, causing Richard to have to open up for her.

* * *

"Sure took you long enough," Abby tightened her lips as she slowly closed the door after her. She simply felt too sick to even bother caring about what he'd say or do to her. She tried walking through the living room, but Richard cut her off by standing in her way. At first she tried walking around him, but when he just moved so he was once again standing in front of her, she looked up at him with an expressionless face.

Her body was shivering. Her wet hair was stuck to her face, and her clothes to her body. He gave her a smile, which started out sympathetic, but quickly morphed into its evil self.

"Look, I don't care what you'll do." She bit her lip and looked down, feeling his eyes on her. "Just kill me if that's what you want. It wouldn't matter anyways." She felt him grab her hair and ripped her head up so she was looking at him. She winced and could already feel her headache becoming way worse.

"Now why would I want that, Abby?" Feeling too bad to reply, she just stared at him. She felt her eyes starting to blacken as he let go of her. Even though she fought as hard as she could to stay awake and alert, she slowly felt herself slipping out of consciousness. Most likely from a combination of hypothermia, shock and sleep deprivation.

* * *

Abby woke up by the bright sunrays hitting her face through the open curtains, but she wasn't really aware of anything besides from the terrible, spinning, stabbing feeling in her head.

It wasn't until she put her hand on her head that she noticed where she was. She was laying in Richard's and Maggie's bed, with no duvet covering her naked, cold body. And yeah, her skin was cold. Really cold. And sticky.

She started coughing like crazy, which forced her to sit up. It felt like she was coughing up all her intestines, and it didn't stop for quite a while.

When she was finally able to breath again, she dried away the tears that had automatically appeared in her eyes as she had been trying to gasp for air while coughing. Biting her lip she tried standing up, right away feeling how her dizziness increased exponentially. She closed her eyes, trying to regain her balance, and when it worked a little, she slowly reopened them, noticing her still wet clothes from the previous night, laying on the floor.

She bit her lip in pain as she bent down to pick it up. She couldn't remember what had happen the night before, but she was in no doubt. Somehow it didn't surprise her at all that he had taken advantage of her after she'd passed out.

She didn't even care about covering herself up as she went to her room. She knew it would be no use and that the chances of anyone being home were close to none.

Hanging her shirt and her pants over the door so they could dry, she grabbed some new clothes and went to the bathroom. She still felt sick as hell and hoped that a warm shower would help just a little bit.


	14. Trouble in paradise?

Here's the next chapter!!  
Sorry it took a while, but was stuck on a chapter I was writing and wouldn't let myself upload this one till I got done :P

Once again, THANKS for the reviews... and ENJOY :)

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**Chapter 14 – Trouble In Paradise?**

"Are you okay?" Abby turned to look at Luka as he sat down at the table next to her. She didn't know what to say. She still felt bad and embarrassed about the other day, so she just shrugged her shoulders. "Well your eye looks better. I almost can't see it anymore." She started playing with a rubber band someone else had left on the table.

"It's called 'make-up', Luka." For a while he just stared at her, like her words had surprised him. Or maybe it was just because her voice had as good as disappeared.

"You don't sound too good. Are you sick?" Abby pretty much choked on her own laugh.

"Oh, is it that obvious?" She looked down, kind of embarrassed about how mean she actually was. "I'm sorry. Just don't feel too well. Got a pretty bad cold and a huge headache."

"Oh." She looked back up at him, just to notice he was now looking at the table. "I'm sorry. You want some Advil? I've got some." Abby shook her head.

"Naah, I prefer not taking painkillers unless absolutely necessary." Luka nodded just as the tardy bell rang.  
"Okay. But if you change your mind, let me know?" Abby just nodded, looking at the whiteboard where the teacher was already writing stuff.

* * *

Luka had to run to catch up with Abby at lunch. "Are we okay?" Abby stopped walking and looked confused at Luka.

"What?"

"You know, are you mad at me?" She shook her head, looking at him like he'd lost his mind.

"No. Why would I be?"

"It just seems that way. You ignored me all through PE." She bit her lip and started opening her locker.

"I'm not avoiding you. I just…" She took out the books she needed to bring to study hall, trying to stall time as she wasn't sure what to say. "I don't know, Luka." She slammed her locker and looked down. "I'm sorry. I'm just not myself today." She started walking towards her class, Luka following her since his locker was that way.

"It's fine. Everyone has those days sometimes. I just wanted to make sure I hadn't made you mad or anything." Abby spun around and gave him a fake smile.

"Well you haven't." She started walking into her classroom, leaving Luka even more confused.

* * *

"Luka!" He looked up, trying to shield his eyes from the afternoon sun, and noticed a little boy waving at him.

"Hey! What's up, Eric?" They were now standing right in front of each other, and Luka messed with Eric's hair.

"Just got picked up from soccer practice." He looked at Abby who was standing behind him, looking at the ground with her hands in her pockets. "What are you doing here?" Luka looked at Abby, who gave him a small smile before re-avoiding his gaze.

"I'm on my way to work. I just got out of soccer practice as well." The little boy's face lit up.

"You play soccer?" Luka smiled at Eric's amazed face.

"Yeah. It's the national sport of Croatia. And most of Europe. I've been playing for longer than I can remember." Eric's jaw dropped, and Luka couldn't help but laugh.

"Can you like teach me, or help me practice some time?" Luka just shrugged.

"Are you sure you need it? I mean, from what Abby has told me, you're quite good." Eric looked amazed from Luka to his sister, before turning back to the older boy in front of him.

"Well, it could never hurt. We do have regionals coming up."

"Eric! Stop bugging him!" Luka smiled at Abby, to tell her it was okay, but she wasn't looking at him. "Besides, we need to get home." Eric looked up defeated.

"I'll play with you some time, Eric." His face lit up, but at the same time looked very surprised. "But only if Abby agrees to come to my place on Friday." This made Abby's head snap up, and she gave Luka a stare which he couldn't decide whether was shock, anger or disbelieve. So he settled on a combination of them all. "I mean, we have to finish our science project anyways." Abby gently shook her head, her facial expression not having changed.

"I don't know, Luka. I don't think that's a very good idea." Luka shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh. Well, if it's because you're scared of meeting my parents, then…"

"No!" Abby interrupted him. "It's nothing like that. Or well, that too. I mean, we haven't even known each other for that long. It will be pretty awkward. But it's more like, I don't even know if I have work that day."

"Come on Abby, you'll have fun." She sent her brother an evil look, which he chose to ignore. "I mean, you can go make out with your 'boyfriend'!" This time Abby punched his shoulder enough to make him grab it in pain.

"Anyways, think about it. Tell me tomorrow or something. Okay?" Abby sighed but then nodded.

"Sure. I'll let you know. Don't count on anything though." Luka smiled and the two siblings started walking. "See you tomorrow."

* * *

"Oh Abby, Eric, you're home." They had barely entered the apartment before Maggie started rambling. "I got dinner ready. It's something I know you all like. Just come into the kitchen when you've put your stuff away, and the table will be set. Richard is already out there." Abby gave her mom a fake smile and nodded before going to her room to put her stuff down. Her rambling just meant that she was turning manic again.

She arrived in the kitchen before Eric and joined her mom and Richard at the table.

"So Abby, did you have a good day in school today?" She was about to answer but never had a chance since Eric entered the room and replied for her.

"I don't know about in school, but she definitely did after. We met her boyfriend on the way home from practice." Abby sent her brother an evil stare, one that told him he would be dead later, but he just shrugged it off.

"I didn't know you were dating, Abby!" She turned back to the grown-ups sitting across the table from her. Richard was staring accusingly at her.

"This is so exciting. Why didn't you tell me, Abby? You know, you can tell me everything." Abby looked down as she could feel herself blushing, silently cussing at Eric for bringing it up. "I love hearing about these kind of things. How long have you been going out?"

"Maggie!" She stopped rambling abruptly as Abby pulled her out of her thoughts. "We're not really dating!" She accidentally looked at Richard, which she instantly regretted. He sent her one of those creepy looks. One of those which told her he could see right through her. That was saying she wasn't telling the truth. Telling her she'd better tell the truth or she'd regret it big time later on.

She bit her lip and looked down. "Okay, fine. Maybe we are, kind of." She looked up at her mom, then Richard, before looking at her hands. "But it's no big deal. It's nothing serious!"

"Yeah. That's why he invited you over on Friday." Abby send her annoying little brother another dead stare as she slightly kicked his shin under the table. Now she was absolutely sure that she was doomed

"Nothing serious, but he already wants you to meet his family?" She looked back up at Richard, whose gaze had now turned more questionable, although still accusing.

"It's not like that." She could feel herself starting to tense up, as everyone were staring at her. "We have to finish our science project for next week." When no one said anything, she decided to continue. "Besides, I already told him I couldn't come. I have to go to work Friday evening." She wasn't talking about McDonald's, but Richard's factory. She'd known that the entire time, and she knew there was no way he'd let her get off.

"I think you should let her go." This made both Maggie and Richard look surprised at Eric, but Abby just rolled her eyes.

"Well that's only because he said he'd help you with soccer." Eric just shrugged off Abby's remark, digging into his chilli.

"So who is this guy?" Abby ran her spoon around in the bowl in front of her. She wasn't sure if Richard was questioning her due to the fact that he had to pretend to act like a father who cared and was concerned about her, or if it was because he was afraid it would mess up their 'secret life'.

"His name's Luka." She looked up to see Richard staring at her, expecting her to continue. So she took a deep breath and did that. "He's a freshman like me and just moved here from Croatia."

"Okay then. I'm gonna have to go by the factory later to pick up something I forgot earlier. I was planning on bringing Abby anyways, so we can talk about it then." She nodded as she looked down, dreading their little 'trip' after dinner.

She dug her spoon into her still hot chilli. She'd really lost all her appetite, but knew she had to eat. She was underweight enough already, and needed all the energy she could.


	15. Keeping Up The Facade

Hey guys...  
Sorry it took so long, but my pc totally screwed up and wouldn't let me update (really evil, I know)!!  
But finally got it to upload, so here's the next chapter :P

_pH: She's always got her Diet Pepsis :P (And I'm not always evil towards you, or okay, maybe I am when I compare you to Paris Hilton, but get over it :P)  
__leiraguzon__: Are you sure he's getting in the way?? :)_

Anyways, LOVE your reviews :P So... ENJOY!!

Oh yeah, another thing: The whole conversation in the end (With Carter), I know you don't know what they're talking about, but you'll find out later :P

* * *

**Chapter 15 - Keeping Up The Facade**

Abby fastened her seatbelt as Richard turned on the car. So far he'd been quiet, not even having looked at her. Somehow she was happy about that, but at the same time it scared her.

She bit her lip as she looked out of the window at the life on the streets in downtown Chicago. She wished she didn't have to be in this car with Richard. She'd much rather be out there, even if it was freezing cold and hailing with daggers or poison ivy.

"I'm guessing you know I didn't forget anything." Abby carefully looked at him, but turned back to the window when she realised he was only looking at the road.

"Yeah."

"So this whole 'boyfriend' business..."

"I know." She turned around so she was looking at him. "I'm sorry. I never meant for it to happen. I tried to avoid it, I really did. And..."

"Stop!" She shut up abruptly by the tone of his voice and bit her tongue. "Not that I can imagine why any boy would possibly want to date you, but it's okay. Normally I wouldn't have allowed you to be dating, but since you already are, I guess there's nothing to do about it." This pretty much took Abby by surprise. She had expected him to punish her, forcing her to break up in some way that would be embarrassing and painful for her, but no way had she ever expected him to accept it.

"And you should go to his place on Friday."

"What?" Her jaw fell to the ground, although not literally. This was so unlike him, which scared her. A lot.

"Well. It'll make you look more normal." He pulled into the garage at his factory and parked the car, but they both stayed put. "That way no one will as easily suspect anything 'different' going on. Unless, of course, if you decide to screw up and make it obvious to everyone!" For the first time he looked at her, and his eyes gave it all away. It was all a part of his big, master plan. To create this normal-looking façade.

"But remember, you still belong to me!" Biting her lip she nodded. How could he even ask that question? How could she possibly forget? After all, he made sure she felt what he meant at least multiple times a week.

"Good! Now, we can't really go back yet, so do you have anything specific in mind you'd like to do?" She looked down as she shook her head. She had been hoping he would leave her alone, but never really having believed it would actually happen.

"Have I ever told you how cute you look when you do that?" Abby snapped her head up, not knowing what he meant. "You know, Abby, it doesn't matter how innocent or pitiful you make yourself look, it'll never stop me or give me bad consciousness." She looked up at him shortly before turning around to stare out of the window.

"I know." She felt her hair tie being pulled out, causing her braid to go up and her hair to fall down over her shoulder.

* * *

"I'll come." Luka closed his locker and turned around. He smiled at Abby as he leaned up against the wall. "Don't think I'll make a habit out of it though." He shrugged his shoulders and started following her down the hallway. "But you better keep your promise, otherwise you'll break Eric's heart." She made a fake pout, but couldn't hold it for more than a couple of minutes before she broke into a laughter.

"You sure seem happy today." Abby shrugged as she stopped at her own locker.

"Well, ain't I allowed to be in a good mood after my 'bad day' yesterday?" In fact, she had no idea why she was so hyper and happy today, but it felt good.

"Of course you are, and it's awesome." She grabbed her biology book and slammed her locker shut, smiling at Luka. "But I'm still kind of curious as to why, though." Abby stooped walking and looked wondering at Luka.

"To be honest, I don't know. It's kind of weird though, since I'm still pretty sick." She shrugged her shoulders before he had a chance of saying anything, and started walking again. "But see you next lesson." She waved at him and went into her biology class, sitting down on one of the middle tables instead of her usual one all the way in the back.

* * *

Abby took a bite of her cracker as she sat down on the flag pole rock thingy in front of the school.

"Is that all you brought?" He nodded towards the couple of salty crackers in her hand as he sat down next to her. She took another bite and nodded.

"Yep."

"Are you sure that's enough? Aren't you gonna get really hungry?" She shrugged her shoulders and ate the last bit of the cracker she was currently chewing.

"Not really." Luka unwrapped one of his sandwiches, while looking questionable at her.

"I've got an extra turkey sandwich. You want some of it?" She shook her head, finishing off her last cracker.

"No thanks. I'm fine." It wasn't that she didn't want it, it was just that she didn't want to give anything away. And besides, her body had gotten used to not eating enough.

"Abby, can I ask you a question?" She smiled at Luka, who looked like his brain was working faster than he could follow along with.

"Sure. Shoot!" For a while he just starred at her, like he wasn't sure what to say. So Abby motioned her him to go on.

"Okay, I know this sounds weird, but please be honest with me." She bit her lip, but nodded. "You're not anorexic, are you?" This made Abby laugh, almost enough to make herself choke. Even Luka couldn't help but smile a little.

"Luka!" She rolled her eyes before smiling at him. "How can I possibly be anorexic? You've seen me eat!" Luka gave her a weak smile, looking kind of defeated.

"True. But I guess you could be like anorexic slash bulimic." Abby just shrugged her shoulders, having a hard time trying not to smile.

"I could, but I'm not." Luka smiled back at her, happy that she had not gotten mad at him, but also realizing what a weird conversation they were having. "You know, in case you still don't believe me, I'm gonna prove it to you on Friday." Luka smiled and took a drink of his water.

"Don't worry, I believe you." She playfully punched his shoulder.

"You better!" They both started laughing like crazy, not noticing Luka's brother walking towards them.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the two young love birds?" Abby stopped laughing and looked down embarrassed. She knew that if Niko was there, then his friends probably were as well.

"Shut up, Niko!" He just laughed and shrugged his shoulders.

"You can't make me. This is a country of free speech as far as I remember!" Luka sent him a dead stare as Abby continued to look down. "Anyways, I just came to pick you up. We have to go with mom and dad to Champaign, remember?" Luka leaned his head back and groaned.

"Damn. I totally forgot about that." He turned to look at Abby who just gave him a weak smile. "I'll see you tomorrow?" She nodded as he got up, ignoring his pitiful glance.

* * *

For a few minutes after Luka left, Abby stayed in the exact same position. It wasn't until she felt three boys in front of her that she looked up. She bit her lip, looking at Carter and two of his friends.

"Hello, Abby!" She didn't reply. In stead she just looked away. "Oh I see, too cool to talk to us now that you've got a boyfriend?" She bit her lip, trying to retain herself from doing something she would later regret. She wanted to just ignore them, but knew better than to do so.

"No." Her voice was weak and could barely be heard, but at least she'd replied. Carter gave her a sly smile and crossed his arms.

"Good. Cause we don't want any 'accidents' to happen. Do we?" She started shaking her head, but quickly stopped herself.

"No." Carter had a thing with having to remind of what had happened every now and then. Kind of like he was afraid she was going to forget it, like that could ever happen. Or maybe he just wanted to remind her to keep her under his control. To keep her scared of him.

She let out a sigh of relief as the first bell rang, meaning that the lunch break was over. Without saying anything the boys started walking away, just giving her a evil smile.


	16. Suspicious

Sorry for taking forever, but I'm working on this stupid, extended essay / literature project for danish (Stupid IB thing)...

And YAAAY!! 4 reviews for 1 chapter?! I feel LOVED :P

Well, here it is... ENJOY!!

**

* * *

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**Chapter 16 - Suspicious**

"So this is where you live?" Abby had stopped walking and was now staring astonished at the house in front of her. It wasn't because it was huge. It was big, bit nothing special. It just looked so nice. Cozy. Family like. It even had this cute, little front lawn with flower beds and everything.

"Mhm." He grabbed her hand and started pulling her after him up the few steps that led to the front door. "Why, did you expect something else?" She gave him a broad smile while shrugging her shoulders, as he was opening up the door.

"This is awesome." He looked confused at her, but she didn't notice him. She was too busy checking out the hallway.

"Now you're scaring me, Abby. Never been inside a 'home' before?" She let out a little laugh.

"Of course I have. It's just, I've always wanted to live in a house, not some boring apartment downtown." Or in the slum, but she left that out. She followed Luka into the kitchen and stopped smiling when she noticed his mom standing at the sink.

"Oh, mom. I thought you were at work today." She took the last plate out of the dishwasher and put it back where it was supposed to be.

"I was, but it was only an 8 hour shift." She gave Luka a hug. "Did you have a nice day?" Luka nodded, and his mom turned to look at Abby. "You must be Abby." She couldn't help but notice how much Luka's mom was smiling, or how happy she seemed when she hugged Luka. Kind of taken aback by how 'white-picket-fence' like everything was, she didn't know what to say, so she just nodded. "Nice to meet you."

"You too." The feeling of Luka grabbing her upper arm pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Let's go." Abby gave his mom one last smile before Luka, with two pops in his hand, dragged her out of the kitchen and upstairs to his room.

Abby sat down on his bed and looked around the big, light blue room. It wasn't much different from any other normal, teenage boy room, except maybe a bit bigger.

Luka handed her a Diet Pepsi can which she quickly opened.

"Thanks." She smiled at him before taking a sip of her pop and putting it on his nightstand.

* * *

"Luka!" Abby broke their intense kiss and looked away embarrassed. She liked kissing him, but it always made her feel so awkward. Kissing was so not her, it was like it was a totally different person.

"Your mom." He sighed, annoyed that they had been interrupted. He got up from the desk and opened his door.

"Yeah?"

"Dinner's ready in 5!" He turned back around to the desk where Abby was fiddling with a stand of hair from one of her pigtails.

"We should really get done with this." Luka shrugged his shoulders and grabbed to two empty pop cans.

"We only miss the conclusion in the report. Let's go down and eat first. We can get it done pretty quickly afterwards." Biting her lip she got up, carefully putting her chair under the table.

"I guess." She started following him out of the room, but he grabbed her hand which caused her to tense up. It wasn't till they reached the kitchen that she was able to get out of his grip, and she was relieved that no one had noticed it.

"So did you get done with your homework?" Abby looked down, folding her hands, still kind of shy.

"Almost. What are we having?" He barely had a chance of sitting down before his mom put down a pot with potatoes on the table.

"Just some ground beef with potatoes and gravy. And I made some green beans as well." She looked at Abby, who was still looking down, biting her lip. "Abby, honey?" Surprised, she looked up at the tall, tanned, beautiful woman, who pointed towards the wall behind her. "Can you get the salt and pepper? It's up there on the top shelf." She gave her a slight nod and reached up for the spices. They were kind of high up though, so she had to stand up on her toes to reach them.

"Where did you get that bruise?" She quickly got the things down from the shelf and pulled her sleeve back down over her wrist.

"It's nothing." She tried avoiding Luka's gaze as she handed his mom the two clay bowls.

"Are you sure? Because it did look kind of big, blue and painful." She bit her lip, trying to come up with an excuse really fast. She couldn't really tell the truth, that it was a combination of a really tight rope and being stepped on.

"Yeah, I..." She could feel his mom staring at her as well, along with Luka's dad who walked into the kitchen at the same time. "I tried turning off my alarm clock and hit the corner of the nightstand instead." She could see that Luka didn't really believe her, but he looked away like he didn't want to press the issue.

"Okay." She sat down at the chair at the end of the table, the only one not yet used, subconsciously continuing to pull down her sleeves.

* * *

Abby was putting on her sweater when Luka's dad entered the room.

"Do you need a ride home?" She gently shook her head, while smiling at him.

"No thanks. I'm fine." He held up his car keys.

"Are you sure? Cause it's no problem. And besides, a young, pretty girl like you shouldn't be walking through Chicago alone at night." For a few seconds she was speechless, never having had anyone she barely knew care about her that much. Maybe not even the people she called family. She quickly nodded her head though, trying to get those thoughts out of her head.

"I'm positive. I've been living here for as long as I can remember, I'll be fine. Thanks anyway, though. I really appreciate it." He gave her a look, kind of asking if she was sure, so she just nodded.

"Okay. But if you change your mind, just come and tell me." She gave him a smile and nodded, and he left the room.

"I like your parents. They're nice." Luka shrugged his shoulders as he handed her her bag.

"I guess. I mean, they just seem parents-like." She gave him a weak smile as she threw her bag over her shoulder.

"You're probably right." They started walking downstairs in silence, but it wasn't an awkward one.

"Bye Mr. and Mrs. Kovac. Thanks for dinner." They both looked up from the TV show they were watching.

"No problem, sweetie. You're welcome back here any time." She gave them smile and walked to the door with Luka.

"Well, I guess I'll see you Monday?" The only reply she got was Luka's lips against her own. Even though she enjoyed it, she quickly pulled back. "Not while your parents are here. Or anyone else for that matter." She was whispering, not wanting anyone besides from Luka to hear. Even though she tried to be serious, she couldn't help but smile.

"I'll see you Monday." He quickly kissed her cheek, knowing she wouldn't protest. "Get home safely." She nodded and opened the door behind her, giving him a small smile as she walked out of his house.

* * *

Luka looked up as someone knocked on his door.

"Come in." It took less than a second for his mom to enter the room.

"Hey. What are you doing?" He shrugged his shoulders and went back to his open workbook on his desk. He hated doing homework but it had to be done.

"Just some Spanish homework." She nodded and Luka could feel her sitting down on the bed next to him. He continued conjugating verbs for a little while, but the silence was getting awkward. Putting is pencil down he turned his head to look at her.

"Mom, I know you, I know there's something you want to discuss, so shoot." She took a deep breath, fiddling with her wedding ring, trying to stall time.

"Is Abby always that quiet?" He gave her a disapproving look and grabbed his pencil.

"She's just very shy. But yeah, she is pretty quiet." She looked at him for a little while, like she wasn't sure how to respond to his comment. "Why? She's not good enough for me?" She sighed and gave her son a weak smile.

"No, she's great, she's pretty. She seems really nice." Luka tapped the pencil on the table.

"But?" She took a deep breath.

"Luka, do you know if everything is alright with her? Like at home?" He crossed his arms while closing his eyes.

"Mom! Stop going all psychiatrist on her, on me!" It came out more harsh than he expected, but he didn't care.

"I'm sorry, it's just, I'm worried."

"Stop it, mom!" She leaned her head to the side, looking apologizing at Luka. "You heard what she said earlier during dinner. And just because someone's quiet or has a bruise doesn't mean something's wrong." He got up and walked to the door. "I'm gonna go take a shower." His mom nodded, so he just turned around and walked towards the bathroom. He had to admit that he could kind of see what she had meant, and some of her concerns, but he just wouldn't believe it. It didn't seem like Abby. It couldn't be Abby.


	17. But it was just a bruise

Longest chapter so far coming up (or well, below) :P  
Thanks for the reviews :P But _MauraFan228_, you'll have to wait a while to figure that out (the whole deal with Carter thing)... sorry

Anyways... ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 17 - But It Was Just A Bruise**

Abby carefully closed the door as she walked into the dark apartment. She knew Richard was awaiting her, so she automatically went straight to living room, where he as usual was watching some stupid sports match on TV.

"I'm home." She didn't say it very loud, but she knew he would hear it. She bit her lip as he turned around and gave her one of those sly smiles that always scared her. She put down her backpack as he got up and walked towards her.

"Did you have fun tonight?" She could smell the alcohol on his breath, and she'd seen all the empty beer cans on the table. Closing her eyes she nodded slightly. "Did anyone suspect anything?" She slowly reopened her eyes and looked unsure into Richard's hostile face.

"I don't know." She accidentally bit her tongue as his big hand slapped painfully against her cheek. She could taste the blood in her mouth, but tried to ignore it. She started shaking her head, but it was barely noticeable. "I don't think so." He grabbed both of her upper arms so violently, that even Abby got surprised. He didn't say anything. They both knew he didn't have to. He had trained her well. She knew what he wanted from her, what he expected from her.

"I lied to them. Every time they asked me questions, I lied. I told them that we were a perfectly normal family. I even said that you were my real dad, not my step dad." He slightly loosened his grip on her arms, kind of like he believed her. But at the same time he gave her a look telling her to continue. She could feel the tears threatening to appear in her eyes, knowing that this wouldn't go well. "They noticed one of my bruises."

She barely finished the sentence before she felt a way tighter grip on her arms, shoving her body into the wall so that her head banged against it, creating a loud thud.

"What?!" She tried turning her head away, but he had her pinned too hard against the wall. She could feel the blood clotting together under his touch and the tone of his voice was penetrating her like sharp needles. It's not like she wasn't used to it though.

"I reached for something and..." She bit her lip, feeling very uncomfortable with Richard's stare. "My sleeve fell down." She winced in pain as he dug his knee into her, but tried not to show it too much. "I made up an excuse though, and I'm pretty sure they bought it." He slowly released his tight grip and Abby slit down along the wall to the cold, wooden floor.

"I guess you were just lucky." She folded her arms on top of her knees and leaned her head against them, trying to get the dizziness to stop. The whole room was spinning around and she felt like she was sitting in one of those 'merry-go-arounds' from the amusement parks, except it had been turned up to 20-times it's speed.

But it only took a few seconds before Richard grabbed her arm and pulled her up so she was facing him. "You know, I was thinking about leaving you alone tonight." He started tracing every little feature in her face with his fingers, looking at her scared eyes. She didn't mind when it was Luka doing it, but when it was Richard it made her want to skin her own face , just because he had touched it. A couple of months ago she didn't let these kind of things get to her, but being with Luka had changed everything for her. "But you screwed up!"

"Where's Eric and Maggie?" Richard let out a little laugh and shook his head.

"Oh don't worry about them, baby doll. They went to see some more than four hour long movie. They won't be back for at least another two to three hours." He punched her stomach with his fist, which caused her to bend forward, clutching her lower abdomen in pain.

* * *

Abby was sitting on her knees on the cold bathroom floor, her head still spinning around like crazy. Her hair had been taken out of the pigtails and was now hanging loose and messy down her back and around her face. She was clutching the towel tightly around her body, her grip so hard that her knuckles were turning completely white. Richard had given it to her after he'd made her undress. She wasn't sure why, it was so not like him. But then again, he always came up with ways of surprising her.

She closed her eyes as she heard Richard approaching her. She would always be able to recognize his foot steps, even if she had to pick them out from the entire planet's population. Noticing the sound of shoes against the floor had stopped, she carefully opened up her eyes again and saw a big, wide bucket of water, which he must have placed in front of her.

Before she even had a chance of imagining what it was supposed to be used for, Richard ripped the towel off her, causing her to shiver as the cold, air-conditioned air hit her.

He grabbed both of her hands and she bit her lip as he violently tied them tight together behind her back. After a couple of minutes passed, with him not having moved nor said one single sound, she started worrying. Trying to be brave she was about to turn around, but Richard took her by surprise. In what felt like a nanosecond, he'd grabbed a painful hold of the hair on the back of her head and pushed her head into the bowl of water.

Abby was shocked. She hadn't expected that. She started fighting Richard, trying to get out of the water. But she couldn't. She was on her knees so her legs couldn't be used, and her arms were tied up. Plus Richard was way too strong. She was panicking. She couldn't breathe. She had no idea how long she'd been there, but she could feel herself slowly loosing consciousness. She had swallowed quite a lot of water when her head was first pushed in, due to the shock.

When he finally pulled her back up, after what felt like an eternity, she fell to the floor, gasping for air, the same instant he let go of her hair. She closed her eyes as she started coughing up some of the water she'd accidentally swallowed. It didn't feel very good. At all.

"Sit back up again." Still gasping for air she tried doing as she was told, but it was as good as impossible since her hands were tied together. Grabbing her one arm really tight, Richard brought her back up to a sitting position, but even though she really tried staying like that, she fell back down onto the floor, feeling like she was going to pass out any second.

She let out an unpleasant moan as he kicked her hard in the back. "I told you to get up!" When she didn't react for a few seconds, Richard once again grabbed her and lifted her up. But this time he started pulling her after him into the bedroom. "Let that be a warning. Next time I'll do it twice, and hold your head down for longer." He leg go of her hair and pushed her onto the bed. "Understood?" Still trying to get over the shock, she nodded.

* * *

Richard laughed as he noticed Abby's facial expression. "Aww, am I hurting you?" She looked away, not wanting him to see anything. "You usually don't complain. Don't tell me you're about to start now." She looked back up at him, recognizing the warning tone in his voice. Biting her lip she started shaking her head, but knew he could see right through her. And she hated it.

"It's my arms. My hands." It hurt enough to lay on them while they were tied together, but to have someone lay on top of her at the same time, making her move around, only made it a whole lot more painful. Especially since Richard was so heavy and always really rough with her.

"Ahh. Well, too bad! Maybe if you're good, if you behave really well, I'll consider untying you when I'm done." Abby slightly nodded before turning her head. She hated having to reply to everything he said, but had learned with time that she was better off that way. If she didn't it would tick him off and he'd torture her until she did reply.

"Won't they be home soon?" She bit her lip the second the words had left her mouth. She wasn't sure how wise it had been to say it. To ask him. He might just see it as a way for her to get him to stop, but she'd never do that. She knew better than to do so. It was more for his own sake. He didn't want to get caught doing anything.

Even though she'd said it, she'd said it as quietly as she could. She closed her eyes expecting him to do something, to slap her or dig his nails into her thigh until it bled, but all that happened was that he stopped moving and sat up on top of her.

"It's not like you were under water for that long, but you might be right." Surprised, she opened her eyes and looked at him. "Looks like luck is on your side today." She sighed in relief as he jumped off of her. She wasn't really sure about his comment though, not thinking that she would ever consider herself lucky. She sat up and looked at him putting on his clothes, pretending this was the most normal thing in the world. But then again, of course it was. For them.

"What are you starring at? Get up and get dressed!" He pulled her out of her thoughts and she noticed he was standing by the now open door. Biting her lip she looked down.

"Nothing, sir. And I can't." She waited for a few seconds before looking back up, seeing Richard starring annoyed at her. "Not with my hands still tied together:" As he walked towards her, she could feel herself tensing up. It didn't surprise her at all when he pushed her violently with his elbow so that she landed face down on the bed. Taking his Swiss-knife out of his pocket, he cut off the tight, thin thread, which had cut through the skin all the way around both of her wrists.

With that he left the room, leaving Abby to slide off the bed. Pulling her knees up to her chest, she looked at her hands. She could barely feel them. The thread had cut off all the blood circulation, and she was now trying to move her fingers, attempting to bring back the blood supply and feelings. The thin red marks around her wrists were stained with blood. The kind of threat he'd used had been so thin and so rough that it had cut through and burned her skin every time she'd moved or touched her arms just the smallest bit.

Taking a deep breath she slowly got up, still trying to recover from the hit in the head and the deprivation of oxygen. She felt like passing out right here and then, but knew that Maggie and Eric would be home soon. So she needed to go find her clothes and get herself cleaned up pretty fast if she didn't want to get caught.


	18. Still Going Strong

Here's the new chapter! I kind of jumped ahead in time, like 2 1/2 - 3 months... The title refers to pretty much everything...

So, ENJOY!! And don't forget to review :P (Love getting reviews... What can I say, they make my day :P)

* * *

**Chapter 18 - Still going strong**

Abby smiled at the sight of Luka and Eric fooling around on the grass, trying the steal the soccer ball from one another. When Luka fell down and rolled around in the mud, she couldn't help but burst out in laughter.

"Wohoo! Go Eric! You just show him how to play soccer!" She high-fived him as he ran towards her, sweat dripping down his forehead.

"Hey! I was the one who taught him that move!" Abby just gave him a big smile and kissed him as he joined her and Eric by the tree.

"Eww you're sweaty." She grimaced her face as she playfully pushed him away.

"PDA!" Sticking out her tongue at her brother, she threw her arms around Luka's neck, just to annoy Eric.

"Aren't you like really hot? This is the warmest day of the year so far." She pulled away and shrugged her shoulders.

"No, not really. And it's only the beginning of May, it's still gonna get way hotter." Luka grabbed the bottle of water out of her hand and emptied half of the bottle in a few seconds. When he handed the bottle back to Abby he looked at Eric who was busy trying to juggle the ball on his knees.

"Well, I think I'm gonna go take me one last game. Still going to be cheering for your brother?" She gave him a seducing smile and slightly shrugged her shoulders.

"Well that depends. Let's see how good you do." He gave her a quick kiss before running out on the grass lawn, stealing the ball from a very surprised-looking Eric, which caused Abby to let out another little laugh.

* * *

"Ready for the biology final tomorrow?" She gave him a sly smile before looking away.

"Well, exams aren't my favorite thing, but I think I'll be fine." She pushed away from the ground so the swing she was sitting on stared swinging back and forth a little.

"I'm starting to get hungry, aren't you?" She shrugged her shoulders, looking at her brother playing basketball with some other kids at the other and of the playground. "We should have brought some sandwiches." Abby smiled at him and rolled her eyes.

"I can give you a sandwich." She jumped off the swing and sat down on Luka's lap. Holding on to the swing, she started kissing him. He put his hands on each side of her face, and their kiss quickly turned really passionate. After a little while, Luka pulled back.

"That is definitely my new favorite sandwich." Abby gave him another smile, one of those that made her look so beautiful.

"Oh, you want some more?" Luka replied by pulling her face closer to him, starting another round of making out.

"Oh my Gosh. I go away for five minutes, and look what happens." Abby pulled away from Luka and rolled her eyes, before turning around to face Eric, giving him a very fake smile. "Do I seriously need to keep you guys in leashes?" She got up from Luka's lap and sat down on the other swing again.

"You should just be happy that we even brought you with us." Eric attempted to roll his eyes, trying to make fun of Abby.

"What ever. Let's go guys." Abby and Luka couldn't help but start giggling when the boys started walking away. Eric tried to be cool, but it was so not working.

"Wow Eric, why didn't you tell us that your sister is so smoking hot?"

"And overly sexy?" Abby's jaw fell down, she didn't want to hear that, and she definitely didn't want it coming from a nine, maybe ten year old.

"Oh please, she's my sister. She's like so not! Or well, she is, but I do not wanna think of her like that!" When they were out of hearing range, Abby turned abruptly towards Luka.

"Did they really just say that?" Luka nodded, giving her one of his 'sexy' smiles which always cheered her up.

"And it's true." She sent him an evil stare before looking down.

"Luka, don't! You know I hate those things." When she looked back up he gave her an apologizing smile.

"I know, I'm sorry. I guess we need to train you in accepting compliments." She gave him a weak smile and shook her head.

"Naah, I'm fine with the way things are right now." She gave him another small smile. Luka motioned for her to join him, so she got up and sat down on his lap, leaning her back against his chest with her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Abby's eyes flew open the second his hand covered her mouth.

"I had a shitty day, so how about you make it a little better." It wasn't a question, but a demand. He spoke so quietly that Abby could barely hear what he said. But she did, and it scared her. He soundlessly pulled the cover off her and started tracing her ribs with his finger beneath her shirt. She tried shaking her head as well as she could with his hand pinning her down, looking over at Eric who was sleeping in his bed, right across the small room.

"We wouldn't want to wake him up, now would we?" She looked back up at Richard and shook her head slightly. "So you better be quiet. Really quiet. You think you can manage that?" This time she nodded, not breaking the eye contact with his evil eyes. "Good girl." He let go of her mouth and she could finally breath properly again.

She bit her lip and looked at the wall as Richard started undressing her. She couldn't bare thinking about the fact that Eric was laying right there, right next to her while all of this was going on. Even though she didn't believe in God at all, she found herself silently praying that Eric wouldn't wake up. She didn't care about herself at all. This was nothing. But she didn't want Eric to ever know about this, least of all see it. She'd do anything to protect him, even if that meant her dying while doing so.

* * *

"Luka!" He barely had a chance of turning around before Abby threw her arms around his neck.

"Wow, what are you so happy about?" Smiling like crazy she held out her exam report card along with the 'end of the year' grades.

"I got straight A's! Even some A+'s. Both for the exams and the regular ones." Luka handed her back the papers and put his hand behind her neck, kissing her. They quickly broke apart though, knowing they were in a public place.

"I'm very proud of you, honey." She looked down, still getting shy whenever he said something nice to her.

"Have you checked yours yet?" He shook his head and started removing his name tag.

"I haven't had a chance yet. But they should be in my mailbox when I get home." Abby just nodded and followed Luka down the hallway to the lounge.

"Oh, hey Abby." She stopped right before she entered the lounge as she heard someone say her name, and smiled at the woman in front of her.

"Hi Dr. Kovac." She scribbled something down on the chart she was holding before looking back up.

"Came to pick up Luka?"

"Well," She started following her down the hall towards admit. "It wasn't really planed, but I just felt like it." She stopped and leaned over the admit desk as Luka's mom started going through some new charts.

"That sounds reasonable enough." She looked up and gave Abby a smile. "Does it by any chance have anything to do with how much you're smiling today?" She looked away a little embarrassed, not sure how to respond.

"Oh, she's just a geek. That's all." She felt him put his strong arms around her, and without moving out of his embrace, she turned her head and looked confused at him. He just smiled widely and then looked at his mom, who looked like she was waiting for an explanation. "She didn't get one single grade below an A." Abby rolled her eyes and leaned back up against him.

"That's awesome. Congratulations." Abby just smiled as a way of thanking her. "Well, I gotta go. Have patients to see. Have fun, kids." She started walking down the hallway and Abby left Luka's embrace.

"So, coming?" She smiled playfully at him before grabbing his hand, 'dragging' him out of the hospital.


	19. All Alone

Thanks A TON for the reviews guys :P

I know I'm being quite evil to the cheerleaders (as in making all the stupid people cheerleaders etc), but it's nothing personal :P I love cheerleading :)

Anyways... ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 19 - All alone**

"Don't forget to bring me a souvenir." Continuing to stroke her hair, Luka kissed the top of her head.

"How could I ever forget that?" She smiled even though she knew he couldn't see it. "Oh yeah, I could of course just get the best souvenir ever, and then give it to one of those popular cheerleader girls. I bet they would love that." She tensed up, about to say come up with some smart reply, when his laughter softened her up. "I'm just kidding, Abby." Pretending to be mad, she leaned further into him.

"I know that." She tried keeping up her façade, but the soft touch of Luka's fingers running through her hair made it pretty impossible.

"I'm gonna miss you, Abby." She snuggled closer to him, turning a little so she could see his face, even though she continued looking down.

"You're only going to be there for a month. You'll come back before you know it, and then you'll wish you had more time there." He carefully placed his hand under her chin and lifted it up so she was looking at him.

"That doesn't matter. Even if it was just a couple of days, I'd still miss you." She gave him a weak, sad smile before looking away. Even though she absolutely hated compliments, he somehow made her feel just a little bit human. Like she wasn't just some worthless piece of nothing as everyone else thought she was. Made her feel... Special?

"It's getting late, though. I should get back." She broke the silence as it grew too awkward. She didn't really want to go home. She didn't want to at all actually, she'd much rather sit here on the beach with him, looking at the sunset. "And don't you have to leave soon anyways?" She didn't want him to leave, but it was like a defence mechanism. A subconscious one that is. She wanted to believe that she would be just fine, but she knew she'd miss him more than she'd ever admit. Lately, being with Luka was the only thing that got her mind off everything else. And with him in Croatia, she'd be all by herself.

"Well," He placed her loose hair behind her ear. "If you really wanna get rid of me that badly." She quickly shook her head and looked at him.

"No! No, not at all." He smiled and kissed her forehead. "How about I walk you home?" He gave her another smile and leaned in to kiss her, but this time not just her forehead. Abby smiled as she leaned in as well, needing a kiss that would last until he came back home.

* * *

"Aww, you look a little sad." She tensed up as he started giving her a shoulder massage. A painful shoulder massage. "What's bothering you, Abby?" She took a deep breath, putting down the stack of papers full of numbers that she was typing into excel.

"Eric's leaving for soccer camp tomorrow."

"Ahh." She held her breath, knowing the tone of his voice and not liking it. She bit her lip as he violently spun the computer chair around, digging his fingers into her shoulders. "Is that all? Or do you wanna tell me the truth?" She looked down, trying to block out the pain from his nails.

"It is the truth." She barely got to finish the sentence before his hand slapped against her cheek.

"The whole truth then." Biting her lip she looked up at his intimidating eyes, quickly looking away again.

"Luka left for Croatia today." She waited many seconds before looking back up at him.

"Oh, I see. So your boyfriend's gonna be gone for?" He looked questionable at her.

"A month."

"A month. Your mom is on one of her self proclaimed 'adventures', meaning she's probably gonna be gone for weeks, maybe months, and your brother won't be home for 2 weeks." He looked expectantly at her, so she nodded slightly. "So you're gonna be stuck alone. With me." He sent her that stare that sent shivers through her body. "Huh?" Biting her lip, she nodded. "Well then it's a good thing that I've got lots of work for you to do over these upcoming weeks." She looked scared at him as he grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the chair.

"How about we start out by giving you a little lesson, huh? Should teach you not to be late for work again." Knowing better than to do so, she couldn't keep her mouth shut.

"What... What do you mean?" He gave her a big, fake smile

"Well, you're gonna have to pay for the money I lost by you not showing up in time. And I'm not talking about working overtime, sweetie."

* * *

Abby pulled her knees closer to her chest, trying to wipe away the tears on her cheeks. She really, really just wanted to be at home right now, but instead she was stuck here in some dark, smelly, old, warehouse room, her entire body feeling more sore than ever. But that's probably what you get from, well... 'Doing it' on the cold, concrete floor.

Her head flew up by the sound of the door slamming, but when she saw it was Richard she looked back down, resting her forehead on her knees.

"Oh, are you that mad at me? That you won't even look at me?" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"I know you hate me," Biting her lip she looked up at him, her cheeks still stained with the sticky, salty water from the tears. "But how could you do that?" Richard just shrugged his shoulders, looking at her like he hadn't done anything wrong.

"First of all I don't hate you. And secondly, it was easy. I don't have to give him his daily pay check if I can just pay him 'with you'." Abby closed her eyes and looked away. Somehow she couldn't believe what he was saying, didn't want to believe it. But at the same time it didn't surprise her at all that he would use her in that way.

"Now get dressed." He kicked the shirt, laying on the ground, towards her. "You've still got work to do out there." Abby picked up the shirt as Richard started walking away.

"So that's it?" Surprised, he stopped walking and turned around. Abby's voice was shaking, but she was at least talking. "This is my new 'job'?" He shrugged his shoulders, giving her an expressionless glare.

"I wasn't planning on it, so not unless you want it to be." She quickly shook her head, hoping that she hadn't given him any ideas. "Well then you better make sure I won't regret it." He threw her pants, which were laying on a box, at her, giving her an evil stare before turning back around and leaving the room.

* * *

Abby as good as passed out the second she fell onto her bed. She had barely gotten any sleep these past two weeks. The summer vacation was usually a time where you could relax, but she hadn't had a chance to do so. Richard had made her take a lot more shifts at McDonald's since she didn't have school, and on top of that he had her work in his factory every day. She didn't really care about that, though.

But the worst thing was definitely being at home, when Richard would want his so-called 'fun'. And then again, that almost happened just as much at the factory as it did at home, but at least he wouldn't 'torture' her nearly as much there.

Apparently he felt like she needed to pay him for, well, she wasn't even sure. Being alive? She took a deep breath. At least Eric would be coming home in a couple of days.

She really wanted to just stay in her bed, get some sleep, but she still had at least another hour of work to do, doing all these weird calculations for Richard.

Groaning, she tried to sit up without bending her upper body. It had been beaten blue and yellow and she was pretty sure she'd bruised a couple of ribs.

She sat down at her desk and took a sip of her now cold coffee. She absolutely hated coffee, couldn't stand the taste or the smell, but she desperately needed it if she wanted to stay awake.

She tried not to fall asleep. She really did. But the yawns kept on coming, and it got harder and harder to focus on all the numbers as they got more and more blurry. She was pretty sure they were jumping around all over the papers.

She put her elbow on the table, leaning her forehead in her palm. The sleep deprivation was taking it's toll on her, and having tried it before, she could feel she was about to black out. She knew she would get in trouble if she didn't get this done. A lot of trouble. But she wasn't able to hold it anymore. She was longing for her bed. Her nice, warm bed, with soft pillows and duvet. But there was no way on earth she was ever going to make it to there.

Her arm slowly started sliding away from underneath her head. She tried to stop her head from banging against the table, but it was too late. She was already unconscious.

Maybe, if she was lucky, she would get a few hours of sleep before he'd be back home from his night shift.


	20. Distant

I'm back with a new chapter :P WOHOO (Just kidding)  
This one's pretty long... (Or well, not really... just compared to the other chapters)  
Sorry it took so long for me to update, but I wasn't home yesterday..

Anyways, THANKS for the reviews and don't forget to leave new ones :P  
ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 20 - Distant**

Abby put her uniform into her bag before signing out. She had been at work since 8 this morning, and it was already 6 pm. Throwing her bag over her shoulder she left the building through the back door.

She shut her eyes the second she came outside. The sun was just as bright as it had been for the last couple of days, which was way too bright. But even worse: It was hot as hell. Another heat wave had hit Chicago and she was sweating to death. She couldn't just walk around in a tank-top and shorts or a skirt like everyone else, and damn she was jealous of them.

"Hey Abby." She froze as she looked up at Luka, tensing up extremely as he embraced her. She was hoping he didn't feel it, but judging by the look on his face when he pulled back, he definitely did. "Is everything alright?" She nodded her head, both to show him she was fine but also to get out of her trance. She hated the way he stared at her with that much concern and compassion. She wanted to just scream at him to leave her alone. Not that she really wanted him to, but things were just way to complicated.

"What are you doing here?" She didn't expect it to come out like that. Like a combination of scared and confused. She could also see on Luka's facial expression that he hadn't expected it either. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that." He was still looking confused at her, so she bit her lip. "I just..." She wasn't sure what she was going to say, but she needed to come up with something. "I worked really late last night, and I've been working all day. I'm just really tired." She looked at him, once again biting her lip, hoping he would buy it. It wasn't like she was lying, she just left out a lot of things in the explanation.

He gave her a small smile, but she could see that he wasn't fully convinced. "Okay. I kind of have jetlag myself, so guess I can't blame you." She smiled back at him, her first smile in weeks probably.

"How about I meet you tomorrow? I really have to get home right now." She gave him her puppy eyes, the ones she knew he couldn't resist. "I don't have to work till later in the evening." He nodded and Abby sighed relieved.

"Meet me at the beach at noon?" She gave him a weak smile and nodded.

"Sounds good." She smiled at him before slowly walking away. She knew that he most probably found her behaviour really weird, but she simply couldn't handle faking right now. Pretending like everything was as when he left. It wasn't. Maggie had pretty much left for good. She had decided that she needed to get away from Chicago, from her family, for a couple of months. To be honest, Abby wasn't even sure if or when she would be back.

Richard was getting worse by the day. Now that there was no school, he was free to do with her whatever he felt like, whenever he felt like it.

* * *

Abby sat on the beach, her knees in front of her, looking at a man and a woman, walking with their 2 young kids and a dog. She couldn't help but smile at the sight. The kids couldn't be more than five and seven years old. They were fooling around, wrestling each other, laughing and just having an amazing time.

It wasn't much, but she did have some vague memories of her childhood. Of how life had been before her dad had left. Before... Richard. Okay, it was never idyllic, with Maggie always having refused to take her meds, it was never very stable. But at least she was able to be a kid. Not having any responsibilities. Any chores. Or well, of course she had to behave properly, clean her room and stuff like that, but those were normal and manageable.

She waved her hands in front of her face, trying to make a little bit of wind. The sun was sharp and bright and she was surprised her clothes hadn't caught on fire yet.

She was waiting for Luka to show up, and she was mentally beating herself up for not having found a spot in the shades. It was way too hot out here, and even the sand felt like it was burning.

Richard had let her go when she asked him. She wasn't really sure why, but she couldn't really complain about it. She just didn't have very much time. She still had to be at work at 1:30 pm, thanks to Richard's insane schedule.

"Hey!" She looked up as Luka plunged down next to her.

"Hi." She gave him a weak smile. She was happy to see him, she really was, but at the same time nervous and shy, possibly even scared.

"How long have you been waiting?" She shrugged her shoulders. Honestly, she wasn't sure. It wasn't like she had been timing it. She had been far away into her own little daydream, deep in her thoughts. But she must have been there for quite a while, because the 'happy family' was no where to be seen.

"I don't know. Not long." Luka nodded and looked down, feeling the awkwardness in the air. For a while none of them said anything, they were just starring out over the water.

"So how was Croatia?" Luka ripped his gaze away from Lake Michigan to look at Abby who'd pulled him out of his thoughts. She was still looking at the ground though, drawing patterns in the sand with her finger.

"It was really nice. It was good to see all my of my family again, hear some Croatian." Abby looked up at him, not succeeding in holding back her smile. She had to admit that it felt nice just hearing his voice, feeling his presence.

"Hey! That's not fair. I can speak Croatian!" Luka looked surprised at her.

"Oh really? I didn't know that. Shoot!" Abby took a deep breath, trying to remember the words. Eric told them to her a while back, said he had found them on the internet at school.

"Ja sam u vete." Luka burst out laughing. Abby just stared confused at him when he continued laughing. It was like he couldn't stop.

"Was it that badly pronounced?" Luka held up a hand, telling her to hold on till he could breath again, which could very well take a while.

"Well that too, but ehm..." He looked at her like he wasn't sure what to say. "You just told me that you're 'on the toilet'." That made Abby start a laughing fit of her  
own, and was soon joined by Luka.

"I'm gonna kill him." Luka gave her a confused look but she just kept chuckling. "Eric. He told me it meant 'I want ice cream' or something like that." Luka nodded, knowing that Eric probably told her that on purpose.

"Well, if you want ice cream, you have to say 'ja utchu sladolet'." She bit her lip, still not getting how he could pronounce those words.

"Good to know. I'll try to remember that." Luka smiled and looked down at his feet, feeling that it was getting pretty awkward again.

"What about you? How have you been this past month?" Abby took a deep breath. This was the part she was dreading, the part where she had to lie. She was pretty good at it, but she hated it. It made her feel, lousy. She wanted to just get up and run away. Hide somewhere where he wouldn't be able to find her. She automatically pulled her sleeves down so they were covering her hands as she looked at him, giving him a fake smile.

"Okay I guess." One very important thing with lying, don't ever go over the top. Make it sound natural. Real. "Been busy with work, hanging out with Eric. Stuff like that." Luka nodded, but Abby couldn't read his face. She wasn't sure if he believed her or not.

She looked down again, noticing that her drawings had disappeared.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." She looked back up at Luka as he pulled her out of her thoughts. He was pulling something out of his pocket and handed her a big clump of wrapping paper. Or well, there was something inside it of course.

"Wow, for me?" Her voice was weak and she sounded just as surprised as she was. Or well, she was in disbelieve. No one had ever though about her enough to get her anything. Not even Maggie when it was her birthday. She always forgot. And well, all of Richards presents always involved her. Naked. She looked at Luka, like she wanted reassurance that it was really for her.

"Yeah. I promised you a souvenir, didn't I?" Abby just looked at the big, blue, heavy object in her hand and slightly nodded.

"I didn't expect any though." She just kept starring at it until Luka's voice brought her out of her own little world.

"Open it!" She bit her lip as she quickly looked up at him before looking back at the present in her hand. Taking a deep breath she carefully started unwrapping it, slowly peeling off the blue paper like the world's fate depended on it.

"A snow globe?" She was starring amazed at the approximately 3 inch tall snow globe in her hand. It was one of the ones made out of glass, and not just cheap plastic.

"Yeah. It's Dubrovnik, the city I'm from. I know it's kind of lame, but..." She could hear in his voice that he was both proud of his home city, but at the same time not sure if she liked it.

"Luka it's... It's beautiful!" It really was beautiful. The bottom was brown with some kind of pattern engraved in graved in it, but it was the pretty old fashioned houses and the beautiful mountains and the ocean inside it which had captured Abby. She carefully shook it and studied the little pieces of fake snow slowly and peacefully moving towards the ground, like it had all eternity before it had to touch the ground again.

Still sitting down she spun around, throwing her arms around his neck. She was hoping he wouldn't hug her back too tight. "Thank you so much." When she pulled back not long after, she saw Luka's confused facial expression turn into a smile. She wasn't sure if it was because she liked the souvenir or if he was just happy that she seemed a bit like herself, actually seeming happy and allowing physical contact.

"You're very welcome." She couldn't stop starring at his face, she'd missed seeing his smile so much. But at the same time it scared the hell out of her, she was still dreading that he would be able to see through her facade.

She couldn't help it. She had promised herself she wouldn't, but when Luka leaned towards her, her body ignored every signal the brain was sending and she automatically leaned in and met his lips with her own. She wasn't sure how long they were kissing, all she knew was that it made her forget all of the things that had happened since he left. She was completely lost in their kiss, enjoying the touch and the taste of Luka's kiss, when his cell phone went off. She closed her eyes as they both pulled back. Somehow Abby was really happy that they had been interrupted, but at the same time she was mentally cussing at who ever was on the other end of that phone.

"I'm sorry." Luka pulled her out of her thoughts as he hung up the phone. "That was just my dad asking if I wanted anything specific from Blockbuster." Abby just nodded, but then ripped his cell phone out of his hand.

"Damn! It's 1:23." She quickly threw his cell phone back onto his lap and started getting up. "I gotta go!" Luka just looked confused at her.

"Abby?"

"I have to leave. I'll find you later." Before he had a chance of getting up, or even saying anything, she was hurrying down the beach. He sighed as he got up as well. There was something mysterious about Abby, and he wished he knew what it was.


	21. Teaching All Over

Don't worry guys, he'll find out soon enough :P  
I know, I know... this chap is evil... Guess I had one of my 'killing-mood' days!!

Anyways, as always, LOVE the reviews and ENJOY!!  
**

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**

**Chapter 21 - Teaching all over**

Richard had barely closed the door behind them before letting go of his tight grip on Abby's upper arm by throwing her up against the wall.

"Are you insane? They could be home!" She regretted her words the second they had left her mouth, the second his hand against the side of her face sent her flying onto the floor. She looked up at him, still not knowing where she had gotten the courage to talk to him like that from.

"Are you calling me stupid?" Shaking her head frantically she backed up against the wall. The look on his face told her that she wouldn't get off the hook for quite a while.

"Please, Richard." She looked at him pleadingly. She never objected, but something inside her made her seem very 'brave' today. Deep down she knew it was because she was scared. She'd seen the way he looked disappointed and mad at her when she had showed up at the factory a bit late, and he had been quiet on the entire ride home. She just wouldn't ever admit it. She needed to believe that she was strong, for her own sake.

"You don't seriously think I'll buy that crap, do you?" She shook her head, biting her lip, as he stepped on her right hand with a smile plastered on his face. "Good!" She looked away from him, not liking the way he grinned at her. She knew it meant he had some kind of sick idea in mind. He had looked at her like that ever since he told her they were going home from the factory, that they had more important things to take care of at home.

"You know, Abby, I'm disappointed in you." Holding her breath she looked back up at Richard to see him standing with his arms crossed in front of his chest. "I thought that after all these years you'd learned how to behave." She swallowed hard, not liking the sound of what was coming. "But apparently not. It looks like you've forgotten." Her heart started beating faster as he slowly bent down and starred into her scared face. "You're a bit too, well... rebellious for my liking. So I'm thinking we need to change that." He continued starring at her for a little while, but Abby didn't know what to do, so she just sat still. "I guess I need to teach you all over."

* * *

Abby winced as Richard grabbed her bruised arm and violently pulled her up from the floor.

"Have you eaten anything today?" Sometimes he really confused her. She had eaten something, but definitely not very much, and that was her breakfast many hours ago. Biting her lip she slowly nodded, not sure if she was doing the right thing by telling the truth. But that didn't really matter in the long run, it wouldn't stop him from doing what he had in mind, and she knew she had to be honest.

"You know how normal teenage girls punish themselves? When they don't have anyone to do it for them?" She wanted to reply, but she wasn't sure whether to nod or shake her head, so she just starred into his evil eyes.

He didn't say anything either. He just pulled her after him, through the apartment until they reached the bathroom, where he threw her onto the ground with so much force that she banged her elbow on the toilet seat on her way down. It hurt. A lot! She could feel the blood diffusing through her sleeve, but knew better than to look at it now. Her skin would be exposed soon enough anyways.

"You see, they throw up." Using her arms, even though it hurt like hell, she pushed herself up so she was sitting instead of laying face down. For a few seconds she looked at him in disbelieve.

"You want me to throw up?" She had made a deal with herself not to ask any questions, not to talk unless absolutely necessary, but this was just too bizarre for her not to.

"Yep." For what felt like an eternity she didn't move. She felt like she was frozen to the spot under Richard's gaze. Faster than the speed of light, he grabbed her hair and pulled her up on her knees in front of the toilet. She closed her eyes, feeling a huge headache emerge. "Just shove your finger down your throat and hold it there till I see digested food in the toilet. Or well, until I tell you that you can stop. Shouldn't be too hard."

Taking a deep breath she slowly turned and looked pleadingly at him, but his ice cold stare told her right away that it was no use, so she turned back to the currently clean toilet in front of her. She closed her eyes as she tightened her grip on the toilet seat, mentally telling herself that she could do it.

Feeling Richard's eyes on her she slowly and hesitatingly brought her hand to her mouth, sticking her right index finger into her throat. She had never done this before, but she'd heard girls in school talking about it. It felt really, really uncomfortable, but somehow she was pretty sure that she was doing it right.

She leaned in over the toilet as she felt like she was choking, like her alimentary canal was shrinking. But nothing came out, except some horrible choking sound. And all it did was to make the valve she was holding down hurt more than she thought was possible, and her throat would probably hurt like crap for hours, maybe days after this.

She couldn't imagine anything she'd rather do than pull her finger out right then, but decided against it. It only took a few seconds before the same, choking feeling returned, but this time worse. She could feel her eyes tearing up, against her own wishes. She didn't want them too, but it was impossible to prevent it when throwing up on purpose. It was like a really bad side effect.

She pulled back defeated after having tried for what felt like forever, looking scared and pleadingly at Richard.

"Please. I'm trying. I really am!" She felt her voice break in the middle of the sentence. She wasn't sure if it was due to her being so frightened while trying to hold back the tears, or because her throat was so sore. "I can't do it. There's nothing there. I don't have anything to throw up." A loud sound escaped as the back of his hand made contact her cheek.

"I don't want any excuses, just continue!" Abby just bit her lip, not moving her gaze away from the floor. She could taste the blood in her mouth but she wasn't completely sure where it came from. "I haven't told you that you can stop yet, have I?" She slightly shook her head before turning back towards the toilet. There was no way to get out of it, so she could just as well get it over with.

* * *

It felt like an eternity before Abby pulled back and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, tears streaming down her face. She had finally gotten something up, but it had taken forever and had barely been thicker that water. She had no idea that it would hurt as much as it did. Since it had been so long since she'd eaten, it was pretty much plain acid that had come up, burning her throat like crazy.

Sinking back onto the floor she used the hand that wasn't covered in drool, puke and other bodily fluids to wipe away the big amount of tears from her face. It wasn't till then that she noticed the blood on her hand wasn't only from her mouth, but also from the bite marks on her knuckles. She hadn't even realized that she'd made them. This was bad. Really bad. Her hands were the only part of her body, along with her head, which couldn't be covered up. People were going to notice those wounds.

"I guess that's good enough for now." She looked up at him, not understanding why he enjoyed seeing her suffer so much. "I was wondering," He starred at her like he expected her to break down any second, but she wouldn't let that happen. She refused to let that happen. "Whenever you and Luka hang out, is it ever romantic?" She didn't say anything, way too confused over what he was asking her. "You know, with candles and stuff like that?" Knowing that he had some kind of twisted idea she gently shook her head.

"What a horrible boyfriend." Abby wanted to say that it wasn't true, that he was the most amazing boyfriend a girl could hope for, but she kept quiet as Richard ripped her up from the floor. "But don't worry. I'll personally make sure you'll try it." He started pulling her after him while twisting her arm around, causing her to bite the insides of her cheeks as she tried to keep up with him.

When he finally let go of her in the kitchen, she started rubbing her arm. It had hurt a lot, but luckily he hadn't twisted it enough to break it or sprain it.

He was going through all the different cabinets and drawers before finally finding whet he was looking for. Abby hadn't moved, she was still standing in the exact same position when he turned back around, giving her an evil smirk. He'd been so wrapped up in what he was doing that she could have easily run away, escaped, but she didn't. It wouldn't have done any good anyways, and it would be better to show Richard that she did know how to behave.

"Aww, don't worry baby." He slowly walked towards her and started stroking her cheek, removing her dried, sticky tears. "This isn't going to hurt." She closed her eyes as she tried to block out his touch. He always said that and it was never true. "I promise." She carefully opened her eyes and gave him a look that told him she was scared of believing him, which he just replied with an evil grin.

* * *

She was sitting in her room, her knees pressed against her chest. He had actually been right when he told her that it wouldn't hurt, which still pretty much shocked her. She had expected the melted wax from the candles being poured all over her body to hurt, a lot, but she'd barely felt it. Of course it had stung a little, but it was nothing compared to all the other things he usually put her through.

Richard was watching some kind of poker show on TV, so she was hiding out in her room. It was getting pretty late, but she wasn't nearly tired enough to go to bed. And besides, going to bed just meant falling asleep, which would make the night go by faster, just so she could wake up to another long day.

Earlier that day she'd considered running away, taken Eric and escaped this life. The though of telling Luka had even crossed her mind, but had quickly disappeared again. And now, when thinking back on it, she couldn't believe she had ever allowed herself to think like that. She should know better than that, and she did. No wonder she had gotten punished to the extend she had, she deserved it.


	22. The End Of The Summer

I'm really glad you guys like my story, and that you don't let all the evilness scare you away... (But don't worry, it'll be better soon... as in, what the heck, you know what I mean :P I think)

And here you go... a new chapter.. ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 22 - The End Of The Summer**

"So, excited about school starting next week?" Abby shrugged her shoulders, not letting go of Luka's hand. He didn't sound too ecstatic about it himself, but who could blame him.

"I guess." To be honest she wasn't really sure. Somehow she was really, really exited. Not only did she kind of like school, but going back would also mean less beatings, less time for her to be with Richard and more with Luka. But at that the same time she feared it. She'd have to be stuck with a bunch of people who hated her, the possibility of people discovering her secrets were much bigger, and it would be much harder to ignore Luka when she needed to.

She'd been pretty good at avoiding Luka this past month since he came home. The fact that he still didn't know where she lived, and that she didn't have a cell phone, made it pretty impossible for him to contact her, and luckily he had been pretty busy with work as well.

"Maybe we'll be lucky and get all our classes together." She rolled her eyes but couldn't help smiling. "Oh yeah, that's right. I forgot about little miss math genius over there having trigonometry." She punched his shoulder, trying to look mad, but not succeeding.

"And for your information, it's trigonometry _and_ calculus. I'm waiting with drivers ed till next year." Luka stopped and looked surprised at her. He knew she liked math, but he'd never expected her to pretty much finish off math before junior year.

"I didn't know that. I guess it's pretty cool though." Feeling shy she looked down, placing some loose hair behind her ear. "So that leaves what? 4 possible classes together?"

"I guess but," She looked up at him, biting her lip. "Can we not talk about school? Please."

"Yeah, sure." He nodded, somehow scared of how she acted. She'd been so distant ever since he came home. Even though she still seemed like she liked being around him, and they had a lot of fun, it was like she was scared of him, scared of opening up. It was like she had to retain herself from breaking down any second, like she was made out of ice and would break into a million little pieces if he touched her or came too close.

"So, have you saved any lives at work lately?" He let out a little chuckle, causing Abby to smile.

"Oh yeah. All the time. They're talking about making me chief of surgery." She started laughing, amazed of how bad he was at being sarcastic. "Naah, not really. Except the kids in the paediatric department really likes me, and I ran down to the ER with blood from the blood bank the other day when they were busy with some gun shot victims." Abby crossed her arms across her chest and looked at him with a fake, proud smile.

"My hero." She grabbed his hand and started walking again. "Anyways, I have to work the next couple of days. Want to meet up sometime during the weekend?" Luka nodded and put a piece of hair, that the wind had messed up, back behind Abby's ear.

"Sure. Saturday, noon, our normal spot?" She nodded and slowed down as they reached Luka's house.

"You know Abby, you can come in. it's not like you haven't seen it or haven't met my family before." Letting go of his hand, she shrugged as she looked down.

"I know." She bit her lip, hating all those awkward moments that were getting more and more common. "I just think I really need to get home." It wasn't that she didn't want to join him, she kind of did, but his mom scared her. She was really nice and Abby really liked her, but the fact that she was a psychiatrist, trained to recognize people like herself, scared her like hell. "Just say hi from me."

"Okay, if you insist." Abby nodded as she looked back up at him, giving him a weak smile. He put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a small kiss before pulling away.

"Well, I'll see you Saturday." She nodded as he started walking down the path towards the house. She let out a sigh of relief when she was sure he was gone. She was always scared that he was going to ask her some kind of question she couldn't get out of or accidentally notice one of her bruises or scars.

* * *

Abby and Luka walked out of the school building with their new schedules.

"That sucks! We only have two classes together next year." Abby just shrugged her shoulders as she tried shielding her eyes from the bright, baking sun. She wasn't sure whether it was a good or bad thing, but to be honest she had bigger things to worry about.

"Well two's better than none I guess." Luka stopped walking abruptly and spun Abby around by grabbing her shoulder. It hurt her like hell, but she fought as hard as she could not to show it.

Luka was looking at her with a very bad, fake, shocked face. "What is that supposed to mean? Here I thought you were as crazy about me as I am about you!" She tried, she really tried, but she couldn't help but smile.

"You're such a dork, Luka." She playfully pushed him away from her and started walking down the stairs, soon followed by Luka. "But just to clear everything up, I am crazy about you!" Looking over her shoulder she sent him a teasing look, before hurrying the rest of the way down the stairs. However, she barely got halfway across the grass lawn before she felt his arms around her stomach, lifting her up and twirling her around. It might hurt, but she chose to ignore that, enjoying having a little fun for the first time in ages. When he finally let go of her, she didn't even get to catch her breath before he turned her and started kissing her. At first she was kind of surprised, but she was quickly the one who made it deeper.

This made Luka really happy. Not only because he liked it, but because it proved that Abby did still want to be with him. Feeling the need to breathe, he slowly pulled back.

"We're in public." Abby just rolled her eyes, resting her hands on his shoulders.

"Oh please! Like that has ever bothered you before." She gave him a seducing smile, and getting her hint, he started kissing her again.

After a while Abby pulled back and looked down, her cheeks blushing. "This is really nice, but ehm..." Biting her lip she looked up at Luka, who was waiting for her to continue. "I kind of have to go." He let out a breath, putting a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Abby's head snapped up. Taking a step away from him, she gave him a disappointed, half offended look, kind of like he had just slapped her. "I'm sorry, Abby, I didn't mean it like that. It's just, I wish you didn't always have to leave, that you didn't keep so many secrets from me. It's like we haven't spent any time together this whole summer." Softening up she looked back down.

"I know. Trust me, it's not that I wanna leave," She looked back up again, or well, as good as she could with the sun getting in her eyes. "But I have to." Luka sighed and nodded, grabbing her hand.

"Okay. But at least walk me to the 'L'?" Giving him a small smile she nodded.

"Sure, why not."

* * *

Getting up from the table, Abby put her plate into the sink, quickly cleaning it under the running water. She put it back into the cabinet and threw her backpack over her shoulder, turning around to leave the kitchen.

"Where do you think you're going?" Biting her lip she took a deep breath through her nose.

"I'm going to school." Even though she wasn't talking very loud, her voice still sounded powerful and determined.

"To school?" She started fiddling with the bottom of her shirt, carefully nodding. "That doesn't start till next week, does it?" Abby closed her eyes. He hated when he was wrong, and well, he was wrong about this.

"It starts the 20th. That's today." When she opened her eyes he was starring at her with his arms crossed in front of his chest, signalling that he didn't know whether or not to believe her. "Look, I'm telling you the truth, I promise. Eric doesn't start till next week, but we start today." Still starring at her with that cold stare he was so famous for, he nodded. One nod, but it was still nodding.

"Okay. I choose to believe you this time, after all, you know better than to lie to me, don't you?" She bit her lip and nodded, just wanting to get out of there. "Good. Now go! We wouldn't want you to be late." She slightly nodded as she started walking towards the door, but stopped when he tightly grabbed her upper arm. "Now don't do anything stupid!" He was whispering, or well, hissing, into her ear and the feeling of his breath against her skin gave her goose bumps.

"I won't." A few seconds went by before Richard let go of her. When he didn't say anything she figured she was allowed to leave. So taking the chance she started walking out of the apartment, happy that he let her.


	23. First Day Back

I'm baaack :P (Just kidding)  
Here's the next chapter... And this is getting kind of sad, evilness might stop soon :( (I know, that's probably a good thing, but it's still fun to write :P)

Well, ENJOY!! And don't forget to review!! (I love love love those things :P)

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**Chapter 23 - First Day Back**

Placing her things on the table, Abby sat down next to Luka in the front of the classroom.

"Wow, that's weird. No new girls having tried stealing you yet?" Trying not to smile he gave her his best, fake, offended look.

"Well hello to you too." Smiling she rolled her eyes, playfully punching his shoulder. "Ouch!" He started rubbing his shoulder, causing Abby to start laughing.

"Ha ha, very funny. That surely didn't hurt." He didn't say anything, he just gave her a pouting face. "I barely even touched you!" She tried really hard to pretend being serious, but it was as good as impossible.

"Oh, look who it is." Recognizing the voices Abby turned around to face two of the 'popular' girls. "It's little miss math geek."

"Yeah, shouldn't you be in like, physics? And not just chemistry 1?" She was about to say something to them, but she never got a chance before the teacher entered the classroom.

"Did I hear someone say 'math geek'?" Abby quickly turned back around and looked down embarrassed.

"Oh yeah." She just continued looking down, trying to ignore the other girls. She could hear them giggle behind her, so she wasn't doing a very good job at shutting them out.

"Well that's awesome." This made Abby look up at the teacher. Now when she thought about it, she'd never seen him before. "I like math geeks. They are usually the ones who get something out of their lives." He looked directly at Abby, giving her a small smile which caused her to blush and look away.

"Anyways, welcome to chemistry everyone. I'm Mr. Alberts, but you can just call me Mr. A. I'm new here at this school, just moved here from Boston, but I have no doubt at all that you guys will make me feel I belong here in no time."

* * *

"Ion quizzes." Abby stopped putting her things into her locker and turned to look at Luka, not knowing if it was a question or a statement.

"Hey, I think it sounds good." He leaned up against the lockers, waiting for Abby to get out her U.S. History book when she turned back around to face it.

"To be able to remember a lot of weird ions and have a test in then every week?" She slammed her locker and they started walking down the hall.

"Yep." A little smile formed on her face when she saw Luka looking at her in disbelieve. "Come on, Luka, it's not that hard. You got them all on a piece of paper. And besides, it can't hurt you to know them." She gave him a smile, knowing he knew that she was right, as they walked into their U.S. history class, sitting down in the back of the room.

"I guess." He smiled back at her, loving the fact that she seemed okay happy today. "So, for lunch. Wanna go eat Mexican?" She bit her lip as she nodded, getting hungry just by the thought of food.

"Yeah, sure, sounds good." She turned back around in her seat to look at the smart board as the bell rang.

* * *

Walking into the apartment, Abby walked straight to her room, putting her backpack on the floor between her bed and the desk.

She was smiling and it felt nice. She wasn't sure weather or not she wanted to stop smiling. She wanted to smile, she liked the feeling, but at the same time walking around and smiling like crazy made her feel so, well, cheesy. But well, she probably wouldn't be able to wipe the smile off her face, no matter how much she tried.

Today had been good. School had actually been okay, she liked her new teachers and none of the classes were too bad. But of course the best parts were the two classes she had with Luka right before lunch, and then lunch itself.

Luka hadn't lied when he said they were eating Mexican, which he knew was her favorite. He had just left out the fact that he had brought it from home. He had actually made burritos the evening before and brought them to school, so they could eat them during lunch. She still couldn't believe he had actually done that for her, but she loved him for it.

They had spent the entire lunch break at the old willow tree behind the school, just chatting and fooling around. They had had so much fun that they almost forgot to eat their lunch, the lunch Luka had made himself.

Still smiling, she walked into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. This summer was hotter than any summer she could ever imagine, so without anything to drink, getting dehydrated would be inevitable.

* * *

Slamming the refrigerator door she turned back around, stopping abruptly when her heart skipped a beat. Richard was standing right in front of her with his arms crossed across his chest, looking down at her with that cold, icy stare.

"What are you doing here?" His facial expression remained the same as he tilted his head to the side. "I thought you were going out of town for the next couple of days." He let out a little laugh, the look in his eyes turning more and more careless.

"It got cancelled. How was school?" She stepped back, not liking the feeling of only being inches away from him. She was surprised by the fact that she couldn't smell any alcohol on him, that he seemed as sober as one could be.

"It was fine." Tightening the grip oh her water bottle, she pushed past him and walked towards her room, silently praying that he wouldn't ruin her so far perfect day.

"Hey Abby!" She stopped walking and closed her eyes as she felt him approaching her from behind. "You don't seriously think that just because you're back in school, you're off the hook. Do you?" With the last part of the sentence she felt his hot breath on her neck, causing shivers to run through her body. The bad kind of shivers.

When she didn't answer, he painfully grabbed a hold of her neck, shoving her into the wall, which caused her to drop the bottle the second her head banged against the door frame.

"When I'm talking to you, you answer me! Understood?" Trying to hold back a quiver she slightly nodded, but it wasn't good enough for him, so he dug his fingers into her thigh, never even moving the other hand from her neck.

"Yes sir." Continuing to dig deeper, he gave her a fake smile, slowly inching towards her.

"You keep on saying that, but somehow you always seem to forget!" This time he didn't give her a chance to reply before he grabbed her hair and pulled her after him into the bedroom.

* * *

The second he let go of her, she moved her hand to the back of her head where she'd hit the door frame, just to realize that it got covered in blood when she looked at it again. The wound wasn't bad enough to need stitches, but it still hurt like hell.

"I haven't got all day, you know!" His half angry voice pulled her out of her thoughts and she noticed that he was laying on the bed. Like he was waiting for her. She just looked at him confused, not sure what it was he wanted from her.

"I figured that you've had enough practice at this to take over the leading part, so come on and make me feel pleasure." She continued staring at him, biting her lip. Was he really asking her to do what she thought he meant? She started carefully shaking her head, not wanting to do it. Not only wasn't she sure if she even knew how to, but this would also mean that it looked like she wanted to. It couldn't really be qualified as 'against-her-will' if she was the one doing all the work, being in control. Could it?

"Just make it look like you're enjoying this as much as I do." Recognizing the evil tone in his voice, the one that told her she was as good as dead if she didn't do what he said immediately, she slowly and hesitantly moved towards him. Closing her eyes, and with her hands shaking like crazy, she started taking off her clothes. First her shoes, which were kicked into the wall. Then her jeans were slowly slipped off her legs and kicked in the same direction, soon followed by her shirt, all while keeping her eyes closed and not breathing.

She slowly brought her hands up to the back of her bra, but as she was about to unhook it Richard stopped her. "Leave those on for now. Just get over here." Carefully dropping her arms down to her sides, she slowly opened her eyes and walked towards the bed, once again holding her breath. He nodded towards the bed, and scared, she crawled up on it in the other end.

"Now, don't forget the foreplay! You know, the touching, licking, kissing etcetera. That's the best part!" She swallowed hard, frozen to her spot. She did so not want to do his. Just the thought of it made her nauseous. Couldn't he just beat her up and come up with new, painful torture methods instead?

So much for her day being perfect.


	24. She's Been Different

Sorry for this chapter being a bit short...  
But well... Some of the others will be longer :)

Not so long now till... well... You're gonna have to wait and see (or guess) :P

Anyways.. ENJOY!! And make me happy by leaving reviews :P

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**Chapter 24 - She's Been Different**

Abby walked into the classroom right before the bell rang. Seeing that Luka sat on their normal seats, she quickly sat down at the empty chair furthest away from him. He had noticed her when she walked in, so shrugging his shoulders he gave her a confused look.

Abby just looked down, trying to avoid his gaze. It wasn't that she didn't want to sit next to him, she just couldn't. She wasn't even sure why, but somehow she feared that it would break her down, that she wouldn't be able to keep herself together.  
I  
t wasn't because it was Luka that it scared her, but just the thought of any kind of contact, physical or spoken, it didn't matter, creeped her out. She was amazed by the fact that she had been able to handle school these past couple of days, but she had really, really tried to block everything else out and just focus on school and home work while being there.

Of course Luka had noticed. He had tried to get her to talk, but somehow, and she wasn't even sure how, she had been able to make up all these little excuses to either postpone their talk or just altogether drop it. She did still talk to him, but she tried keeping it to a minimum.

"Abby!" Her head snapped up as the teacher pulled her out of her thoughts, her heart skipping a beat. "Can you tell me the definition of a homogeneous mixture?" She bit her lip, starting to fiddle with a hair tie around her hand. She knew the answer, she just couldn't get herself to talk. "Abby?"

"Ehm... A substance which is pure throughout. Normally only consisting of one kind of compound or element. Like pure water." She was looking down again, not sure if what she was saying was even correct.

"That's right. Just speak up next time, I could barely hear you." Biting her lip she nodded while still looking down, happy when the teacher went on with the lesson.

* * *

Abby threw her back pack onto the floor as she walked into her room, not caring about the fact that all her books fell out and she'd probably fall over it a few seconds after when she'd forgotten it was there.

"Abby?" Letting out a breath she fell onto the bed, forcing herself not to wince in pain. "Is there anything wrong?" She quickly glanced at her brother who was reading a book, most likely homework, on his bed.

"I'm fine Eric, just leave me alone." He was quiet for a few seconds, and she knew he was trying to think of something to say. He had always hated it when she was in a bad mood or wouldn't talk with him.

"But..."

"Please, Eric. Just shut up!" She hadn't meant for it to come out the way it had. It sounded so mad. Angry. Evil! She took a deep breath and bit her lip, looking across the room to her brother. It broke her heart seeing him like that, just starring shocked at her with tears appearing in his eyes.

Sighing she got up and sat down next to Eric on his bed, putting her arms around him. "I'm so sorry Eric, I didn't mean it like that." She put her head on his shoulder, gently stroking his hair.

"It's okay, Abby." She carefully shook her head, wanting him to know she did it, but didn't want to move away from the comfortable spot her cheek had landed. It wasn't okay that she yelled at him. Every since he had been a baby, Abby had been the only one who'd been there for him, the only one he could trust. The only one he could always count on. And she never got mad, or sad. Or she did, but she never let him see it. He barely never saw her upset. He was used to her being his rock, so that one time every second year, or maybe not even that often, when she accidentally yelled at him or got mad at him, he broke down. Because that was always so unexpected.

"No, it's not alright Eric. I shouldn't have yelled at you." Moving a bit back she turned him around so he was facing her. Taking Eric's hand in hers she looked down, biting her lip. She felt a need to explain her recent behaviour to him, but had no idea how to do so.

"Look, I know I haven't been myself lately." Looking up she saw Eric starring at her, giving her his full attention, so she looked back down. "I wish I could tell you why, explain why I am the way I am, but I cant." She bit her lip, looking at her bitten down nails. "It's not that I don't want to tell you, I really do, but I don't know the answer myself." She was lying, and she hated it. Of course she knew why she was acting the way she was, but she couldn't really tell Eric the truth. She looked up at Eric as he squeezed her hand, his way of telling her that it was okay. "I guess it's just some kind of stupid, teenage girl thing." She gave him a fake smile, which she had become a professional at doing lately. Smiling back at her, he threw his arms around her, hugging her tight.

"I don't care what weird teenage syndromes you have, Abby. I'll always love you." This caused Abby to smile. A real smile, not one of those fake ones.

"I love you too, Eric." She pulled back and messed up his hair, which she knew he hated. "Now, get done with your homework. I need to go to work." Eric just nodded as he tried straightening out his hair again, but continued laughing insanely when Abby did stumble over her school books.

"It's okay, Abby, I'll put them back into your bag. Just leave, I know you're probably in a hurry."

Abby sent her brother a smile. How had she ended up getting such a perfect brother? Or more specifically, how could such a perfect, young, innocent boy possibly have ended up in such a screwed up family. He deserved better.

* * *

Luka was starring blankly into space as he stuck his fork into his pizza, not even noticing that his father was looking at him.

"What's wrong, Luka? You never eat you pizza with a fork, you always use your hands." Getting pulled out of his thoughts, he plinked a few times before putting his fork down and looking up at his parents.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. I was just thinking, that's all." When the silence was getting too awkward, he picked up his Hawaiian pizza and took a big bite. He wasn't really hungry, but he needed some distraction from his family's glares.

"You sure? You've seemed pretty distracted lately." He took a deep breath and looked at his hands on the table.

"I'm sure, mom. Just got a lot of things going on." For a few seconds everyone stayed quiet. Luka hated the silence, it was so unusual in their home.

"Hmm. Okay I guess. If you insist." He was about to say something, to defend himself, but never had a chance before his brother cut in.

"He's having girl problems. I think Abby's mad at him or something. She's barely speaking to him." Sending his brother an evil look, he kicked his shin under the table.

"Stop talking about things you don't know anything about, Niko." His older brother held his hands up defeated, shaking his head.

"Hey, I'm not trying to offend you, I'm just stating the obvious." Luka sighed and looked back down at his food, not sure how to respond.

"Is it true, Luka?" He closed his eyes for a few seconds before looking up at his parents who were waiting for him to answer.

"I don't know." He let out a breath. "I don't know what's wrong. Ever since we came back from Croatia she's been different." He stopped talking as he saw the look his mother was sending him. He knew what she meant, what her opinion was, but he still didn't want to believe her. Even though her theory did seem more and more likely, he kept telling himself that she was overreacting, that she was mixing her job into her personal life. Into his life.

"Well, cheer up Luka. I'm sure everything will work out just fine." He gave his dad a small smile before picking up his pizza again, starring at it in his hand.

"I hope so." He continued starring at the pizza slice in his hand, debating on whether or not to eat it. After a few seconds he sighed and put it back on his plate.

"I really can't eat anything. Can I be excused from the table? I need to start my chemistry report." He looked up when no one said anything.

"Sure. Go ahead." Nodding a 'thank you' he got up and picked up his plate. "Just leave it, we'll take care of it." Putting it back on the table, Luka nodded before leaving the kitchen to go upstairs to his room.


	25. Can't Be True

Sorry it took me so long, but I haven't been home all day... Had to go see my sister perform :P

Anyways, here is the next chapter... Now don't kill me, please (it's not evil... you'll know what I mean when you're done reading)!

And yes, I know there's more Carter stuff here, but you're still gonna have to wait for that explanation :) Sorry...

But well... ENJOY!! And review please, if you wanna make me happy :P

* * *

**Chapter 25 - Can't Be True**

"Abby," He walked up to her as she was putting her books into her locker after the last lesson. "Please talk to me!" Leaning up against the row of lockers, he crossed his arms in front of his chest as he waited for some kind of response from her.

Biting her lip she looked down for a few seconds before carefully looking at up at Luka. It only took her a couple of seconds to look away again though, slamming her locker and hurrying down the hallway, away from him.

Luka sighed. She hadn't looked at him long enough for him to be able to read her eyes, the look she sent him, but at the same time he knew he wouldn't have been able to even if she had held the gaze for hours. It was like she wasn't even looking at him, or at least didn't want to look at him.

He took a deep breath as he bent down and picked up the folded piece of paper from the floor. It had fallen out of Abby's trigonometry book as she was opening her locker, but she had been too busy trying to ignore him to notice it.

Opening it up he revealed a full piece of paper completely covered in weird little drawings and patterns. Nothing out of the ordinary, except it seemed pretty dark. Luka wasn't sure what it was that made it seem so 'sad', but the fact that there was nothing like flowers or smileys or those kind of things on it sure helped. Somehow it disappointed him. He had been hoping that this note would miraculously give him a look into Abby's head, help him understand what was going on. He had hoped that this tiny piece of paper would hold the answer, but it seemed like that wasn't the case.

"What's that?" Getting pulled out of his thoughts, he quickly folded the paper and put it in his pocket before turning around to face his brother.

"Nothing. It's nothing." Niko just gave him a fake smile and padded his shoulder.

"Yeah, somehow I don't believe you." He started walking away, knowing that Luka would follow him. Not only because he was his ride home, but because he saw the confused look he had sent him. "I couldn't help but overhear you and Abby's conversation before. Or well, your monologue."

"What?" Luka practically had to run to keep up with her brother.

"All I'm saying is, she isn't as perfect as you'd like to believe." Shocked, Luka stopped walking and looked angrily at his older brother, but realizing there was no chance of Niko stopping, he started running to catch up with him.

"What the heck are you talking about?" Niko just shrugged his shoulders as he unlocked his car, knowing that he was making Luka angrier with each second that passed. "Do you know something I don't?" Sighing, the older boy opened his car door.

"Luka, just get in. I'll show you when we get home."

* * *

Luka threw his bag on the bed as he walked into his brother's room. Leaning up against the desk, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, waiting for Niko to come up the stairs.

"Good, we're home, so now, tell me!" The entire ride home had been silent. It had felt like ages as Luka was just waiting for Niko to tell him what was apparently so important, but still not important enough to tell him right away.

"Calm down, Luka." He looked up at the ceiling for a few seconds before giving Niko an evil glare. "There is something you need to know before I can show you."

"Just get to the point!" Luka cut him off. He was getting tired of waiting and lately he'd been very impatient. Nodding slowly, Niko walked over to his dresser.

"Look, I know that you know that I've never liked Abby, but not even a blind person wouldn't be able to see how much you care about her." He felt Luka's eyes on him as he carefully took something out of the top drawer. "And lately I've seen how it has killed you to, well, not be able to talk with her." He looked down as he walked closer to his brother, who was now standing in the middle of the room.

"So trust me, Luka, it's not like I want to give you this. I don't want to see you hurt, but it would be wrong of me 'not' to show you." Niko held the paper out in front of him, and Luka barely got to turn it around before he fell down onto the bed, starring at the picture in his hand.

"This can't... That's not Abby!" He started shaking his head as he felt his brother sitting down next to him on the bed. There was no way he was going to believe this was her. She'd never pose on a bed. In her underwear. She wouldn't even show him the skin on her arms, so why on earth would she reveal practically her whole body?

"Luka, I'm sorry..."

"No! It must be photo-shopped or something. It's not her." At least the body. Yeah, there was no way he could deny that that was her face, her hair, but... Okay, he had to admit that it was a really nice body, but he still wouldn't believe that it was actually her.

"It's not. And there are more where it came from."

"Where 'did' you get it from?" He didn't mean for it to come out as hateful as it had, but he knew that Niko knew he didn't mean it like that.

"I can't tell you. All I can say is that I've seen some of the others, and trust me, this one is the 'least bad' one." Luka could feel his knuckles turning white as his grip tightened on the picture. He felt like ripping it over or making a ball out of it and throw it into Lake Michigan, but he stopped himself and instead put it in his pocket.

"Okay." His voice didn't sound very convincing, but he didn't care. There was no use in hiding, or trying to hide his emotions. Getting up from the bed he grabbed his backpack.

"I'm just gonna go, ehm, do my homework." Niko just nodded as Luka walked hesitatingly out of the room.

* * *

Luka hadn't gone to his locker after the last class. In stead he had gone straight to this big tree close to the school, which he knew Abby walked by every day. It was dark outside, the sky was covered in thick, dark clouds and it looked like it would start raining any second. But Luka didn't care. He wanted, no 'needed' to speak with Abby. Now.

As he had expected, it didn't take long for her to come. Abby flew into the air as someone grabbed her upper arm.

"Damn, Luka." She put the hand Luka wasn't holding on top of her heart, trying to get it to stop beating so fast. "Don't do that!" Her voice was weak and she was trying to get her arm out of Luka's grip, but she wasn't succeeding. Instead he grabbed her other arm as well, forcing her to look at him.

"I'm not letting you go, Abby. Not until you talk to me." She tensed up at his words, carefully shaking her head as she looked scared at him.

"Please, Luka. Just leave me alone!" Luka just shook his head. Even though it killed him to see Abby looking so vulnerable, he needed to get her to talk, to get the truth out of her.

"No, Abby, I can't do that. It's Thursday today, do you know what that means?" Biting her lip she slightly shook her head. "It means that you've been completely ignoring me for more than a week. Not just that 'barely talking with me', but 'completely' ignoring me!" He hadn't even finished the sentence before he felt the rain drops on him.

"I'm sorry!" She sounded like she meant it even though her voice was still barely above a whisper.

"But why, Abby?" Biting her lip she looked away, but not before Luka noticed the pain in her eyes.

"I can't tell you." She was whispering, but her answer wasn't good enough for Luka, so he started gently shaking her, not wanting to hurt her. "I can't, Luka." She was looking back up at him, slightly shaking her head and her voice a lot more powerful. "I really can't!"

Luka sighed. He was hoping that he could get her to talk herself, but it didn't look like that would happen. Hoping that she wouldn't run away from him, he carefully let go of her arms and took the picture out of his pocket.

"Does this have anything to do with it?" The second he held it up in front of her he saw how it was like all the air got punched out of her. If she had looked vulnerable before, then she looked absolutely broken now, with tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"Where did you get that?" With her voice shaking, she took a small step back, but at least she didn't run away.

"From my brother." Abby bit her lip as she looked down, and Luka could see how she was trying to hold her tears back. "I don't know where he got them from, though. Do you?!" She looked up at him as his harsh words escaped his mouth. It hadn't come out as a question, but more as a statement. An accusation. Continuing to bite her lip she looked up at him with closed eyes.

"Carter." She opened her eyes to look at him as her voice cracked. "He got it from Carter."

"Carter?" Wiping her eyes for tears that had yet to fall, she carefully nodded. "So it's real? It 'is' you?" She couldn't look at him. She knew that she'd break down if she did. So biting her lip till she could taste the blood, she looked away. Luka just let out a breath. It was all he needed. The look in her eyes had said it all. He let his arms fall down by his sides, placing the picture back in his pocket.

"So that's why you've been ignoring me." He spoke very quietly, speaking like he was stating the obvious. Abby's head flew up. Looking hurt at Luka she started slowly shaking her head.

"No." Her voice was shaking. "They're old." Still shaking her head she looked pleadingly at Luka. "They have nothing to do with it." Luka grabbed her upper arms which made her look up at him for a split second before looking back down.

"Then what, Abby?" He was speaking louder now, trying to get through to her. "Talk to me!" He shook her a few times but stopped when she looked back up at him with tears streaming down her face.

"I'm pregnant!" Luka let go of her the second the words had escaped her mouth. Or well, she'd practically yelled it. His arms fell to his sides as the rain started pouring down, soaking them in less than a second.

"What?" Abby just shook her head, looking like she'd just seen her entire family get killed. The look in her eyes was a combination of fear, sorrow and embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, Luka." Biting her lip she took a step back. Luka didn't move, he was just starring at her, not knowing what to say. Shaking her head again she looked down, taking a deep breath.

"I have to go." She started walking away from him but quickly sped up. It wasn't long till she was out of Luka's view.

He barely noticed that she left though. He was too shocked. He was just starring straight into the air. The empty air where Abby had been a couple of seconds before. He couldn't believe what he had just heard, didn't want to believe it. Abby, his Abby, pregnant? He sure had gotten more out of her than he'd expected, hoped for.

It wasn't till he shook his head to get rid of his thoughts that he noticed how cold the rain was making him. Maybe he should just go home and think things over. He'd talk to her tomorrow. He'd have to get her to tell him everything, even if that meant ripping it out of her. He wouldn't just let her break his heart like this without a good, a really good explanation.


	26. The Slum

Wow, 5 reviews... That's a new record :P

Glad you guys like it... Here's the next chapter!! It's a bit shorter though :(

But enjoy... hopefully you'll like... And don't forget to review :)

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**Chapter 26 - The Slum**

"Hello, Luka." His brother was waving his hand in front of him, trying to get his attention. "Are you alright?" Getting pulled out of his thoughts he looked up at Niko, slightly nodding his head. "Are you sure? You ignored us all yesterday at home, you didn't show up for soccer practice and today it's like you've been in another world."

"She's not in school today." He was looking down at the bread sticks in front of him, continuously dipping the smallest one in the cheese sauce. He felt his brother's confused eyes on him the entire time, and in the end wasn't able to ignore him any more. He needed to talk to someone.

"It's not like her. She always shows up, even if she is really sick." Niko gave him a sympathetic smile which didn't reach his eyes.

"I thought you talked to her yesterday, judging by your behavior at home."

"I did." He leaned back in his chair, taking a deep breath. "And I didn't like how it tuned out. I think that might have something to do with why she's not here today." Moving his food to the side, Niko put his elbows on the table.

"She told you the truth about the picture." It was a statement, not a question. Luka looked away, shrugging his shoulders.

"Kind of." He turned back to look at his brother who was staring at him like he wanted him to go on, so he did. "Look, she told me something which I can't really tell you. At least not yet. Yeah, I'm pretty mad at her, but I'm trying not to let it get to me before I know a bit more." He took a sip of his Fanta, feeling the need of some sugar.

"So what are you going to do? Force it out of her next time you see her?" Luka shook his head, stirring his pop with the straw.

"No, I'm gonna find her today after school."

"But how? I didn't think you knew where she lived." He gently shook her head, looking out of the window.

"I don't, but I know how to find out." He looked at his brother who was giving him a confused look. "Just tell mom and dad that I probably won't be home for dinner."

* * *

Luka leaned up against the bleachers as he watched Eric's soccer team practice after school. He had skipped practice himself for the second day in a row, but he felt that it was more important for him to talk to Abby than to practice soccer. Of course he'd have to come up with a really good excuse when he returned after the weekend, but he still had time to come up with one.

A little smile formed on Luka's face as Eric stole the ball from one of the older boys and got it into the net. He had taught him that move the day Abby and him had brought Eric with them to the park, and seeing how all the other kids fussed around him like he was a God was definitely worth it.

Watching the boys fool around on the field reminded Luka of the good, old days when he was still just a little kid, back when he didn't have to worry about school or work or even girlfriend problems. It almost made him forget about why he was there, what had made him come here in the first place.

Luka got pulled out of his thoughts as the coach yelled that they were done with practice. Noticing that Eric was walking happily towards the other end of the bleachers where all their stuff was with some of the other boys, Luka pushed himself away from the steel and walked in their direction.

"Hey Eric." The young boy looked up surprised before running over and high-fiving him.

"Luka!" He sounded so excited that Luka couldn't help but smile. "What are you doing here? And where's Abby? She's supposed to pick me up." He picked up his bag and threw it over his shoulder.

"Aren't you going to go change like the others? Go take a shower?" Luka nodded towards the other boys who were heading towards the school building.

"Naah. I usually wait with that till I get home. And besides, it's so hot outside, I'll start sweating again anyways." Luka shrugged as he slightly nodded his head, seeing the point in what Eric had said.

"But where's Abby?" he took a deep breath, not completely sure what to tell Eric. He had been wondering about that all day but hadn't been able to come up with a excuse.

"You know, Eric, I don't know that myself." That just caused Eric to look up at him confused. "The thing is, she wasn't in school today and I'm kind of worried about that." Eric bit his lip as he looked down, something he'd definitely picked up from Abby. He was silent for a little while, not sure how to respond.

"So are you gonna take me home?" Luka grabbed his hand an gave him a smile as he nodded.

"Yep, just lead the way." Now he'd actually see where Abby lived. Eric seemed completely obvious to the fact that Abby had been trying so hard to hide it, just happily leading the way as he kept changing between humming and rambling about all sort of stuff.

* * *

Luka started getting more and more uncomfortable as they got further into the slums of Chicago, one of those places you did not want to hang out. He didn't like thinking about Abby living a place like this, in a small apartment with junkies hanging out in front of their front doors. He'd much rather imagine her in some cute, little house with a pretty front yard with flowerbeds and maybe even a dog and a cat running around behind the picket fence.

But trying to think realistic, he realized that it actually made sense. This was an okay reason for her to be embarrassed about it, not wanting him to see the way she lived. It would explain why she was so amazed by his house, and it would definitely make sense as to why she didn't want Eric to walk around by himself.

"Are we there soon?" Eric stopped his ramble about some fight in school and shrugged his shoulders.

"I guess. It's only a couple more blocks." Luka just nodded and followed Eric. True, it was just a couple of blocks, but for each block it seemed to get worse. When Eric finally stopped in front of a door, Luka started studying the building. It was 5 storeys high and needed a renovation badly. Many of the apartments looked deserted, but Luka figured they probably just belonged to some of the drunks and drug addicts walking around on the street.

Eric walked up to the door and pushed it open. Somehow it didn't surprise Luka at all that the lock on the door was broken. Or maybe there had just never been a lock.

"There is no elevator, so we'll have to take the stairs." Luka just nodded as he followed Eric into the dark, 'not so good smelling' hall. He could see that there was lamps on the wall but they had either been smashed or just weren't working. There was trash laying all over the floor, and in one of the corners Luka noticed a syringe. A shiver ran through his body, he couldn't even imagine living a place like this.

Eric was running up the stairs, and Luka soon followed him, not wanting to touch the wall nor the railing. And of course he had to walk all the way up to 4th floor.

* * *

"It's a good thing I brought my keys." Eric held up his keys but Luka quickly snatched them out of his hand. He didn't know why, but he had a very bad feeling, a hunch that something was wrong, and he didn't want to subject Eric to anything.

"How about you stay out here while I go in and see if she's in there, see if she's alright?" Luka could tell that he was about to protest, but seeing the look Luka sent him, he carefully took a step back and nodded slowly.

"Okay." Luka just gave him a small smile before turning around and open the door. At first he got kind of surprised to see that it actually looked like a pretty normal, clean home on the inside, but it didn't take long for him to notice the chairs which had fallen over and the broken glass on the floor next to some magazines that looked like they'd been thrown off the table. Carefully closing the door behind him so Eric wouldn't come bursting in, he slowly walked deeper into the apartment, through the living room. It wasn't till he turned around to enter on of the bedrooms that his eyes fell on the kitchen floor. His heartbeat slowly began increasing and he could feel the goose bumps forming all over his body.

There, on the cold, stone kitchen floor laid a small, fragile body. Naked, but covered in blood and bruises. Luka felt his whole body get paralysed. Even though the back was turned towards him it was easy to see who it was. Abby.


	27. Blood

Here's the next chapter... Hope you'll like it :)

ENJOY!! (And review please... Only get an avarage of 3 each time... which I'm really happy about, but more wouldn't hurt either :P)

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**Chapter 27 - Blood**

"Oh god." He had to force himself out of his trance. Pulling himself together he started slowly walking towards her, but he quickly sped up and knelt down in front of her.

"Abby?" He hesitated for a few seconds before putting his hand on her shoulder, afraid that he'd hurt her even more. "Come on, Abby, wake up." He started gently shaking her, trying to be as careful as possible. Even though he had no idea what had happened to her, it made him forget everything she'd told him, the reason why he was here. All that mattered right then and there was Abby.

After a little while she finally started stirring, her eyes fluttering. Sighing relieved, Luka pulled his hand back. At least she wasn't dead or in a coma.

"Abby?" She slowly opened her eyes and the second she saw him, the look in her eyes turned to pure, extreme fear. Feeling the cold air on her body she knew that she was naked, beaten up, and that Luka was starring at her. She closed her eyes due to the banging pain in her head as she tried pushing herself up from the floor with one arm while attempting to cover up her body with the other.

"What are you doing here?" She started looking around the room confused, noticing the mess everywhere and the blood all over the floor. Her blood. "What time is it?" She looked panicked at Luka. "I need to clean this up and I... I need to pick up Eric." Knowing that she wouldn't be able to cover herself up, she ignored the fact that she was naked and just tried to get up from the floor, but Luka stopped her by placing both hands on her shoulders. She looked away for a couple of seconds before looking back at him, and Luka could see the tears forming in her eyes.

"Abby, let me call an ambulance." She pushed his hands away as she shook her head, looking at him like he'd just slapped her.

"No, you can't! Please don't!" Luka sighed as she scooted away from him, leaning up against the cabinets. "You have to leave, Luka. You can't be here." He forced himself to look away from her body and to look at her face instead. It only made sense that she didn't like him looking at her, but the only reason he did was because of all wounds and bruises, not because she wasn't wearing clothes.

"Let me help you, Abby. Please!" Biting her lip she shook her head, looking down at her knees which were now pressed against her chest. "Okay, Abby, you have two choices. Either you let me help you, cause you're clearly not okay, or I'm going to call an ambulance. You decide." She looked up at him with a shocked expression in her eyes. She didn't like any of the options, but knew there wasn't anything she could do. Still biting her lip she looked away, not wanting to look into his eyes.

"Okay." Her voice was barely above a whisper and it sounded so broken. She waited a few seconds and when she didn't get a reply, she continued. "You can stay." She turned her head and looked at Luka. "Just please, promise me you won't call an ambulance." Giving her a small, forced smile he nodded.

"I promise." He got and walked closer to her, moving a piece of blood soaked hair from her forehead, which caused her tense up.

"Okay, Eric is outside. I picked him up after practice since you weren't in school." Abby just looked confused at Luka. "Is there anywhere he can go? A friend's house maybe?" She looked down like she was trying to think before looking back up.

"A boy from his class, he... He lives further down the street." Luka nodded.

"Okay. Can he walk there himself?" Abby just nodded, not looking up.

"Yeah."

* * *

"So, you want to tell me what happened?" He knelt down in front of her as he came back into the kitchen. She hadn't moved at all and was sitting in the exact same position as she had when he left.

"What did you tell him?" She was speaking in a weak monotone, staring at the floor.

"I told him that you're sick, that it would be best if he spent the night at a friend's house." She didn't reply. She just continued starring at a dirty spot on the floor, hating the fact that Luka had seen her like this.

"We need to clean out these wounds so they won't get infected." When she didn't respond he sighed. "Okay, go to the bathroom, I'll be there really soon." This time he got a small nod out of her, so Luka gently put his hand on her shoulder as reassurance, which caused her to wince, before heading out of the kitchen.

It didn't take him long to find her room, considering that the apartment wasn't very big, but he was surprised by what he found. The room was tiny, it barely looked 'lived in', but what really caught his attention was that there was two beds in it. Clearly, she shared the room with Eric, which to Luka seemed completely wrong. A 15 year old girl should not be sharing a bedroom with her 10 year old brother.

Remembering why he was there, he went over to the dresser and started going through the drawers, trying to find something for Abby to wear.

Not finding anything that would work, since all of her shirts were so tight they might stick to the wounds, Luka found his own bag. Since he had skipped soccer practice, he could just use the t-shirt he had brought for it. It was clean and even a bit big for him, so it would be perfect for Abby.

Hurrying back out to the kitchen, he put the clothes on the counter and started searching the cabinets until he found what he was looking for.

* * *

When Luka walked into the bathroom, he saw Abby curled up on the closed toilet seat with her arms tightly holding her bent legs against her upper body and her forehead resting on her knees.

Hearing Luka enter the room, she carefully lifted her head to look at him, but the previously embarrassed look turned into fear the second she noticed the bowl in his hands. The bowl Richard usually used to punish her with.

"I couldn't really find anything in your room, so here's my t-shirt you can put on when we're done." It wasn't till he got closer to her that he noticed how she was staring scared at the bowl. "It's just water, Abby." She didn't respond, she just kept starring at the big silver bowl. Yeah, no big deal, just water. It was always 'just water'.

Telling herself that Luka wouldn't hurt her, she forced her body to stop being so tense as she turned her head back around, resting her chin painfully on a big bruise on her knee. However, the fact that Luka started stroking her hair, putting it behind her ear, didn't really help her calm down. She liked it when it was just hanging down, it was really good at covering up her body, even for hiding her face, due to the length of it.

"Do you have any kind of bandages or band aids?" It took a few seconds before Abby slightly nodded.

"In my room. They're hidden in a box below my bed. In the corner." She took a deep breath before continuing. "There are some towels and cloths in the cabinet on the wall, the one next to the shower. They're all the way in the back." Although she couldn't see it, she felt Luka nodding. As he got up and left the room to go pick up the things, Abby closed her eyes. She felt dizzy, really dizzy, and tired, and she was pretty sure it was because of the many hits and the banging on her head.

It wasn't long before Luka came back, and when he did, Abby felt him slowing down as he came closer to her.

"I think we need to take care of that arm to start with." Confused, she looked up at Luka and saw that he was looking back and forth between her arm and the floor. Taking a deep breath she looked down to where he was starring, noticing a small puddle of blood, still slowly getting bigger. Well that definitely explained the dizziness, she was still losing blood from the multiple open cuts on her arm that she'd forgotten all about. The cuts on the pinkie side of her left arm.

Luka quickly put down the bandages and went searching for the towels, but it didn't surprise Abby when it took some time for him to find them. She had after all hidden them.

She looked down as he came towards her, not wanting him to see her eyes. She was scared, embarrassed, and she knew it showed. She tensed up as Luka carefully grabbed her arm, silently cursing at herself for reacting that way, telling herself that it was just Luka, that he wasn't going to suddenly twist it or pour boiling water on it.

"I'm just going to clean out the cuts, Abby. It might hurt a little, but we have to so it won't get infected." She just nodded. She knew that, she was used to handling these wounds. Biting her lip she looked away as she felt Luka carefully wiping away the dried as well as the fresh blood from her arm. She couldn't really feel it, the water was a bit hot so it could get the dried blood off, and somehow it actually felt pretty nice.

"This might sting a little." Biting her lip, Abby winced as the peroxide came in contact with her wounds. Sure, it stung a bit, but it could be worse. She was used to worse.

None of them said anything as Luka finished up cleaning out the cuts on her arm. It wasn't till he was wrapping the bandage around them that she turned to look at him, at her arm. It looked like she had broken her wrist or her lower arm with the bandage going all the way from her hand to close to her elbow.

"Did you make those cuts yourself, Abby?" Biting her lip she looked away again, causing Luka to sigh. Feeling a couple of tears building up in her eyes, she gently shook her head.

"He made me do them." She was speaking so quietly that she wasn't even sure he heard her, but that was probably a good thing, cause she wasn't sure she wanted him to hear it.


	28. Shocking Revelations

Wow!! reviews in less than a day... I feel honored :P

So glad you guys like it... Here's the next chapter.. ENJOY!!

* * *

**Chapter 28 - Shocking Revelations**

As Luka went to the sink to clean the blood off the cloth as good as he could, Abby brought her now bandaged arm back up to her knees.

"Are you alright?" It wasn't till Luka pulled her out of her thoughts that she noticed her body was shaking slightly.

"I'm fine." She looked up and Luka sent her a look telling her he didn't believe her. "I'm just a bit... uncomfortable." She looked back down at the dirty floor, dirty from her blood. "That's all." She felt him giving her a pitiful smile. And of course he couldn't blame her, who would want to sit there, naked on a toilet, with their entire body exposed and full of wounds and bruises?

Looking around for a few seconds, Luka grabbed an already blood stained towel and handed it to her. Gratefully accepting it, she put it between her upper body and her legs, holding tightly on to it.

She tensed up subconsciously as he moved so he was behind her. Or well, she had to twist a little on the seat for him to have a full view of her back. Her bruised, ruined back. For some reason that was Richards favorite torture spot, probably because it was so easily accessible and a big area. She had no idea how bad it was, but judging by Luka, who had frozen up behind her, it would have to be pretty bad.

He shook his head, trying to snap out of his trance. He couldn't believe how horrible her back was. Yeah, her whole body looked terrible, but it was nothing compared to her back. It was covered in blood and bruises, so he had figured it was just like the rest of her body. But now, when he looked at it up close, he noticed the huge amount of scars and newly made cuts and wounds. And that was just what he could see through the blood.

Taking a deep breath, he grabbed the wash cloth from the bowl of water, slowly moving it towards her body. He knew he had to clean out the cuts, but he was scared of hurting her. He closed his eyes for a second as he let the cloth rest against her right shoulder blade, causing her to tense up a bit for a couple of seconds.

Moving the cloth across her back, he slowly revealed more and more bruises, burns and scars. Especially one scar caught his attention. Even though he was far from done with wiping her back for blood, he put the already blood soaked cloth back into the bowl. Staring fascinated, but in a bad way, at her shoulder, he carefully let his finger run down her scar, tracing the four lines that didn't look new, but not too old either.

"What happened, Abby?" He felt her tensing up, not only because of his touch, but also because of his question. She knew he didn't mean the scar, but the reason why he found her the way he did, the reason behind her big amount of scars on her back. She took a deep breath, trying to come up with something to say, but knew that there was no way she'd get out of this. She'd have to tell him the truth. At least some of it. She could try hiding it as much as possible, but she wouldn't be able to lie if he asked her any questions.

"He found out." She felt him stop his movement for a couple of seconds before picking up the cloth again.

"Who, Abby? Who found out what?" She bit her lip as she felt the wet cloth on her back once again.

"That I'm pregnant." Her voice got weaker with each word and she felt herself shrink under Luka's gaze. Even though she couldn't see him, she could still picture the hurt in his eyes. She hated doing this to him, but he was the one who had asked her, who wanted to know. For a few seconds he didn't say anything, and Abby somehow hoped that reminding him she was pregnant would make him stop asking questions.

And somehow he did want to stop, but the need to know more was bigger. He really wanted to help her, but how could he if he knew nothing about what was going on? And reminding him she was pregnant didn't answer a lot of questions, except why her stomach was so much more 'bruised' than the rest of her body. Someone clearly wanted to get rid of the... baby. He didn't like to think about that. Not the fact someone wanted to get rid of it, but the fact that it was there, inside her, inside Abby. That life was growing inside her.

"Who is 'he'?" She felt the tears building up in her eyes, and as the peroxide once again touched her body, she winced.

"My... Step dad." She felt Luka stop what he was doing and closed her eyes. There, she'd said it. For the first time in so many years she'd told someone one of her biggest secrets. She'd never told anyone that she didn't have a dad. That she had a step dad. Yeah, sure, it wasn't that special, many people had step dads, but it was a part of her life that she kept to herself.

"Your... step dad... did this to you... because you're... pregnant?" She felt a single tear slide down her cheek as she nodded. Luka sounded shocked, and she didn't blame him. "Why?" She didn't reply, she just looked down while biting her lip. For a while none of them said anything, so Luka went back to cleaning out her many wounds.

"Abby? Who's the father?" She leaned her head back, looking towards the ceiling with her eyes closed before looking back at the floor. She could feel the tears threatening to fall and knew she wouldn't be able to hold it together for much longer.

"He is." Knowing Luka, she knew that he was probably frowning confused.

"He?" Yeah, he sure sounded confused. She gently nodded her head, trying not to let the pain from the peroxide on the new cigarette burns get to her.

"Richard..." It wasn't till after the words left her mouth that she remembered he didn't know who that was. "My step dad." Luka felt like his heart stopped beating. There was the answer to the question that had been bugging him for more than 24 hours, but it sure as hell wasn't what he wanted to hear. This was way worse than anything he could have imagined. Why couldn't she just have cheated on him, that would have been so much better.

"So he... raped you?" His voice sounded almost as broken as hers. The tears which had been building up now started flowing freely down her cheeks. She closed her eyes as she shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess." She wasn't really sure whether it was raping or not, after all, she didn't protest. And well, she was just used to denying it, denying the fact that she was being abused to herself. She felt Luka continuing with cleaning out the wounds, putting Band-Aids on the worst ones. He worked in silence, and Abby didn't mind. She didn't like answering his questions.

* * *

It wasn't till he finished that he broke the silence. He walked around her and knelt down so he was at eye level with her. She knew he was there, but she didn't want to look up, so Luka had to gently place his hand under her chin and lift her head. Her eyes were shiny from the tears, which were still there. Even though they weren't running down her cheeks, it looked like they would start any second.

"Can you take care of the ones on the front of your body yourself?" She nodded. His voice was so soft and caring, and she knew he asked because he could tell she wasn't comfortable with him looking at her body. "Okay. Abby, will he be back later?" Biting her lip she frowned for a few seconds before replying.

"He said he was going out of town today, won't be home till next week." She looked back down at her bandaged arm. "I guess I must have passed out before he left." Luka nodded slightly and stroked her cheek, wiping away some of the half dried tears. Giving her a pitiful smile, he took a deep breath.

"How about I go make us some hot tea or chocolate, and you can finish out here?" Abby bit her lip as she looked up at Luka.

"We don't have anything." Closing her eyes she took a deep breath, looking back down again. "And he'll kill me if I touch anything from the kitchen that isn't mine." Smiling sympathetically, Luka slowly stood up.

"Okay then. I saw a little show not more than a block away when I came here." Abby didn't respond, she just kept starring at the floor. "I think I'll go see if I can find us anything, I shouldn't be gone for more than 10 minutes." When she didn't say anything, Luka put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you gonna be okay?" She just nodded, and not wanting to push her even more, Luka started backing out of the room.


	29. Avoiding The Subject

Sorry it took me so long to update, but here it is :P

Well, as usual, thanks for the reviews (even though I barely got any this time :( ) and ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 29 - Avoiding The Subject**

When Luka came back less than 15 minutes later, he found Abby wiping off the blood from the kitchen floor. The living room and the bathroom had already been completely cleaned for any kind of trace that there had ever been blood or mess there.

"What are you doing?" She got up from the floor quickly, putting the free hand on her head in an attempt to stop the spinning. A couple of seconds later she put the red paper towel into the trash and instead grabbed the counter for support.

"Cleaning." She ripped off some more paper towel, but as she turned around to continue what she was doing, Luka grabbed both of her now covered shoulders. At first she looked scared into his eyes, but pulling herself out of the trance, she looked down, trying to get out of his grip. "Luka, I need to clean up. I need it to disappear. "

"You don't have to." She just ignored him and continued struggling. "Abby!" He shook her gently and she finally looked up at him. "Go sit down, you're obviously in no state to be cleaning right now." She looked at him like she wanted to protest, but nothing came out of her. "Go, Abby. I'll take care of this." He nodded towards the floor to make sure she knew what he meant, gently slipping the paper towel out of her hand. Looking defeated, she started playing with the sleeve of her shirt, the huge t-shirt that Luka had given her, the one which fell all the way down to her knees.

"Okay." She didn't like giving in, but she knew she had no choice. Biting her lip she slipped out of Luka's grip, and while he watched her, she slowly turned around and left the kitchen.

Entering the living room, she sat down at the far end of the couch, pulling her knees up below her chin. She couldn't believe what was happening, why did things always have to go wrong? She wiped away some tears before they fell, not wanting to cry and especially not in front of Luka. He wasn't supposed to know about this, at all. Why couldn't this just be some horrible nightmare?

* * *

It didn't take long before Luka came into the living room, carrying two cups of hot chocolate. Placing one of them on the table in front of her, he sat down on the couch.

"How did you get done so fast, Abby? There was quite a lot to clean up. Did you even clean the rest of the wounds?" She just nodded, starring at the cup in front of her. It smelled really good, she just couldn't get herself to reach for it.

"I did. I'm just really used to doing it." Seeing Luka's confusion turn to pity, she quickly looked away.

"But how... How do you usually clean out the ones on your back? Isn't that hard when you can't reach them?" She took a deep breath and shrugged her shoulders, still not wanting to face Luka nor talk about it.

"He usually does it for me if the wounds are bad." She was whispering, not wanting to think about it. She could feel Luka tensing up next to her.

"What? He'd hurt you and then try to help you? Why?" She could feel a small tear slowly sliding down her cheek. She nodded slightly, looking at him for a split second before turning back to a spot on the wall.

"He doesn't want me to end up in the hospital." She continued staring at the really uninteresting spot on the wall, but it was better than having to face Luka. "And he just uses it as another way to hurt me."

"What?" She felt another tear slide as she looked at Luka, who looked pretty broken himself.

"He pours pure alcohol in them." Once again Luka felt like his heart was breaking in even smaller pieces. He silently cursed himself for continuing to ask her questions, when it was obvious that the answer would only hurt the both of them.

"Luka, please. I don't want to talk about it anymore." She pulled him out of his thoughts and he noticed the tears running down her cheeks. For the first time he realized that the sparkle in her eyes, the one he had loved so much from the beginning, was more than just this beautiful, unique sparkle. It was a silent cry for help.

How could he possibly feel bad himself, feel so hurt and broken, when Abby was sitting right in front of him. Thinking about how bad he felt himself, he didn't even dare imaging how horrible she must be feeling, going through all those things, having to hide it, and telling about them would definitely be worse than hearing them.

"Yeah, sure, sorry." He shook his head, pulling himself out of his thoughts. Putting his cup on the table, he picked up Abby's and held it in front of her. "Drink something, Abby. You love hot chocolate." It wasn't that he wanted to push her, he just tried changing the subject. Besides, she probably hadn't gotten anything to eat or drink all day. Hesitating, she took the cup from Luka, starring at it for multiple minutes before taking a sip from it.

The hot fluid flowing down her throat calmed her down a bit. Even though it tasted absolutely amazing, it reminded her how hungry she actually was. Taking another sip she put it back on the table.

"Thanks." He gave her a small smile and moved a strand of hair away from her eyes. He didn't know what to say, the silence felt so awkward, but he didn't want to do anything which could break Abby even more.

* * *

Luka walked back into the living room after having been to the restroom. Sitting down on the table, he looked at Abby who was still curled up on the couch. They had been sitting in the living room for more than an hour, barely having said more than a couple of words to each other. Checking the time, Luka sighed.

"Are you hungry, Abby? It's getting pretty late." She looked up for less than a second before tearing her gaze away again, slightly shrugging her shoulders.

"Not really:" She was lying. She felt like she was starving to death, but she couldn't tell him that.

"Well I am, and I bet you are as well. I got some pizzas we can put in the microwave, so what do you say, Hawaiian or triple-meat?" She closed her eyes, hating that he was right.

"Hawaiian I guess." A small smile formed on Luka's lips, happy that he had gotten a reply out of her.

"So, do you want me go ahead and try figuring out your kitchen by myself, with the possibility of me blowing this whole building up, or do you want to come join me?" This even got a small smile to appear on Abby's lips, but it far from reached her eyes.

"I trust you." She looked up at him and he nodded understanding. "But I guess it wouldn't hurt to come with you." She wasn't smiling and her voice sounded like it would crack any second., but Luka still chose to look at it as a positive sign. He held out his hand for her, and Abby reluctantly took it, letting him help her get up.

She followed him to the kitchen, getting up on the counter as Luka got the pizzas out of the plastic bag. She still wasn't wearing any pants, just underwear and the t-shirt, so she felt pretty uncomfortable sitting on the counter. She tried ignoring her thoughts, though, telling herself that Luka wouldn't care. Why would he? He had already seen her entire body, so why worry so much about her exposed, bruised legs?

"So, now we only have to wait 3 minutes." She gave him a small, forced smile before looking down, feeling her hair against the exposed skin on her arms. "Hey, let me see your arm." He sounded a bit more serious, so Abby looked back up at him, holding out her bandaged arm. He grabbed it carefully, looking at the few reddish pink marks on it.

"Well, it looks like a little blood diffused through the bandage, but it doesn't look too bad." He let go of it again and Abby placed her hand on the table. "I would actually be surprised if it hadn't, considering how bad it was bleeding." She bit her lip as she look down at her lap, noticing the huge bruises on her inner thighs for the first time. She wasn't really sure how to respond, so she was more than happy when the microwave started making that annoying sound it always did when it was done.

"Hold on a sec." Abby just nodded, watching Luka get the pizza out and putting it on two plates, grabbing some silverware from the top drawer. "Wanna go sit in the living room, or?"

"Sure." Shrugging her shoulders she carefully jumped off the counter. "That's where we usually eat anyways." She followed him into the living room and sat down on her normal seat, tensing up internally as Luka sat down on Richards seat across from her.

"Are you okay, Abby?" He pulled her out of her thoughts by waving his hand in front of her.

"What?" She looked up at him like she didn't hear what he said, but then nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." She quickly picked up the fork and the knife, cutting off a piece of the pizza and eating it. She had to admit that it was delicious, and it felt really good to eat something.


	30. Leave Me Alone

Thanks a bunch for the reviews...

Here's an update!!... ENJOY!! (And sorry if the story seems to be moving a bit slow)

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**Chapter 30 - Leave Me Alone**

Abby didn't look up as Luka sat down next to her. She just continued doing the chemistry exercises they had done in school, not wanting to fall behind because of Richard.

"Abby?"

"You can leave, Luka." He took a deep breath. She'd been like that for a while now, cold and shutting him out. When he just sat there, not saying anything, Abby turned to look at him.

"I'm fine. I don't need you here." Luka sighed as she looked back at the book in front of her, feeling defeated.

"Abby..." He carefully placed his hand on top of hers, not surprised when she pulled away abruptly. Even though it was obvious that she tensed up every time he touched her, he pretended like he didn't notice, knowing that Abby was trying to hide it.

"Look at yourself," Biting her lip she looked away. "You're _not_ fine." Putting down her pencil, she turned and looked at him like she had absolutely no idea what he was talking about, before crossing her arms over her chest and staring into the air in front of her.

"If you were fine, I wouldn't have found you unconscious on the kitchen floor." He knew that he sounded somehow mad and really harsh, but he couldn't help it. He cared about her, a lot, and he couldn't stand seeing her like this. "You wouldn't be covered in cuts and bruises, your hair wouldn't be sticking together because of the blood in it, and your..."

"Well I'm used to it!" Getting pulled out of his thoughts, Luka stared at her speechless. He'd hoped to get her attention, but he'd never expected her to yell. For a while they just looked at each other, none of them knowing what to say. What she'd said had hurt Luka. Even though he knew this definitely couldn't be the first time it had happened, judging by all her scars, it hurt like hell to hear Abby confirming that it was an occasional thing. He had hoped that it wasn't very frequent and that it had never been nearly as bad as it was this time.

Wiping away some tears that weren't even there, Abby pushed herself away from the table and walked into her room before Luka could stop her.

* * *

Luka sighed as he stood up. He wasn't sure how good an idea it would be to follow her, but he had no choice. He wouldn't let her do this to him, to herself.

Taking a deep breath he walked towards her room with determined steps, knocking slightly on the door before entering the room. She was standing by her bed with her back turned towards him, taking off the shirt and exposing her skinny, bruised back.

"What are you doing?" Covering herself up with one arm, she turned around and threw Luka's shirt at him.

"I don't know, going to bed I guess." Her voice sounded so distant, and for the short second she'd looked at him, it looked more like she was starring into nothing. She quickly grabbed a shirt from under her duvet, one of her usual long-sleeved ones, and put it on along with some long pyjamas pants, which Luka figured was what she usually slept in.

"You sleep in that much clothes?" The second the words slipped he felt like hitting himself with a hammer, especially since Abby froze for a few seconds. Of course she did, why wouldn't she. "I'm... I'm sorry Abby. I wasn't thinking. I guess I would as well, as a protection, if... if someone beat me up." He wasn't sure if the words had come out the right way, if they sounded like he wanted them too, and judging by Abby's facial expression when she turned around, they most definitely didn't.

"It has nothing to do with that." She was looking at him like he came from a different planet. "If it did, I would be sleeping naked. That way I'd get it over with that much faster, without having to undress first." Seeing his shocked, but confused expression, she sighed as she sat down on the bed. "I just don't want my brother to see my body. I don't want him to know what's going on."

Luka took a deep breath and sat down at Eric's bed across from her. This was so wrong. All of it. Just the smallest things like a 15 year old girl having to lie to her 11-year old brother to protect him from their parents. It was like a nightmare.

"How long has this been going on?" He spoke very careful. Abby hadn't exactly been too open about things, and for the past couple of hours she had completely shut him out. It was like she was trying to keep up an appearance, not wanting to show Luka her feelings. Or maybe she really just wanted to show him that she was okay and didn't want him to get involved. Luka was pretty sure it was a combination of both possibilities, but having grown up with a psychiatrist as his mom, he knew that she was far from fine, even though she was in denial about that herself.

"Luka..." There was a warning in her tone, but at the same time it sounded very pleading.

"Look," Trying to find the right words, he put the shirt down on the bed next to him. "I'm not leaving you, Abby. There is no way you're getting rid of me tonight. And if you try to kick me out, it won't be long before the police, or well, an ambulance shows up here." He starred at her blank eyes for a while, until she broke their gaze and looked down. He had let out a lot of things from his little 'speech', but it didn't matter. He knew she understood the words spoken in between the lines. He was kind of threatening her with calling the police, but at the same time telling her that he was doing this because he cared about her. That he didn't want to leave her alone for her own sake. And his, but he kept that to himself.

Even though she was looking down, Luka continued starring at her for what felt like hours, although it probably wasn't more than a couple of minutes. It was Luka's cell phone that brought both of them out of their trance as it started ringing.

"Hello?" Abby looked up for a split second, but quickly looked to the side instead. "Yes, I know it's past 11, sorry." Abby closed her eyes, somewhat jealous that he had a family that cared about him, got worried if he didn't come home. "No, I won't be home tonight. I'm with Abby." This made her head snap up. "We just have some things we need to work out. Her parents are fine with me staying here. Sorry I didn't call you, I just totally forgot about it." Abby let out a small sigh, relieved that he didn't tell whoever was on the other line anything. "Yeah, love you too. See you tomorrow." Shutting the phone he looked back at Abby and saw her questioning expression.

"My dad." Her expression not really changing, she slowly nodded her head.

"Thanks. You lied for me." He wasn't sure whether it was meant as a question or a statement, so he just followed her example and nodded.

"Well, I couldn't really tell her the truth. I won't do that to you Abby. I want you to know that you can trust me."

"You know why I never wanted to go to your house?" She looked up at him, her eyes shining from the water in them, practically cutting him off. "I was scared of your mom." When Luka gave her a confused look, she looked down, biting her lip. "I was scared she'd find out." The last sentence was barely audible, but Luka still heard her.

"She did." Her head snapped up, giving Luka a surprised, but shocked look. "From the very first time she met you, she got a feeling that something was wrong." He saw the hurt in her eyes and knew that his probably looked the same way. All this time he'd denied his mom's gut feeling both to himself and to her, and then it turned out she'd been right all along. And it killed Luka. He could have stopped this, saved Abby, if he had just listened to his mom's many pleads and advices.

"Oh." Fiddling with a strand of her hair, she looked away embarrassed. Hearing that his mom had suspected something really killed her. She had deserved all those brutal beatings . It was her own fault. Richard had been right all along, she was no good. At anything. She couldn't even keep a freaking secret from the world.

"You never answered my question." Abby looked up at him, confused, for a split second before remembering what he was talking about. He eyes quickly faded into that expressionless state, staring blankly at her hands.

"Abby, please! Days? Weeks? Months?" He was speaking slowly, watching her carefully. She wasn't reacting to anything he said, just continued staring at her fingers which were playing with the sheet on the bed. "Years?" Biting her lip she looked as far away from him as possible, pain clearly showing in her eyes. It was all Luka needed. He got his answer, but he sure didn't like it.

"Luka I'm... really tired." She looked up at him for a few seconds before looking back down at her hands, but it was enough time for Luka to notice how exhausted she looked. And well, she did have a pretty good reason for it. He could only imagine how tiring it must be to be knocked around and tortured for hours, only to stay up all day after having suffered a huge blood loss, and having to go through all the emotions and pain she had.

"Yeah, of course. I'll just go sleep on the couch." He was about to get up but stopped himself and put his hand on her knee, causing her to jump slightly. "Unless of course... it would be okay with you if I... stayed in here." Abby just shrugged her shoulders, still not looking up.

"I don't care."


	31. Letting It All Out

As usual, THANKS for the reviews... Glad you still like it...  
Sorry it took a while. but I've been out shopping all day... GOSH I HATE shopping!!

ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 31 - Letting It All Out**

When Luka woke up the next morning he was surprised to find Abby's bed empty, especially since it was just after 5 A.M. Rubbing his eyes he quickly sat up. He was still pretty tired and really wanted to just go back to sleep, but he was too worried about Abby to even let the thought cross his mind.

Leaving the room he found her in front of the mirror in the bathroom, brushing her long hair into a high ponytail.

"What are you doing?" She grabbed the purple hair tie from the sink and wrapped it around her hair. She was already dressed and looked like she'd been up for hours.

"Going to work." Putting her brush back in the cabinet, she walked past Luka without looking at him.

"What?" He followed her into the living room, leaning up against the door way as she picked up her keys. "You can't go to work Abby."

"I have to." Her voice was so much more powerful and determined than the day before. She had to stop as she got to the door since Luka was blocking her way. Crossing her arms across her chest she looked up at him annoyed, but the only thing Luka noticed was that you couldn't see one single one of her bruises. Knowing that they couldn't have disappeared by now, he figured she'd covered them up with make-up. But if she was able to cover these up completely without the make-up even showing, then he didn't even dare think about how many times she'd come to school with the same amount, or maybe even worse bruises that no one had been able to see.

"Abby..."

"Luka, just let me through!" Getting impatient she let her arms drop to her sides. "I can't be late." Luka sighed but didn't move.

"Call in sick." Looking at him like he'd lost his mind, she shook her head, trying to push past him. Forgetting about the cuts on her arm, he grabbed it, only to let go the second he saw the pain in Abby's eyes as she winced.

"I can't Luka. It's not like I'm just going to work at McDonalds." Looking confused at her, he grabbed both of her arms, but this time further up so he wouldn't hurt her.

"Then where _are_ you going?" He continued staring into her eyes as she didn't respond. It looked like they were working really hard to come up with a good excuse, but in the end gave up.

"Richard's factory." He started slightly loosening his grip, but quickly tightened it again as he felt Abby trying to pull her arms away.

"Well I'm not letting you go!"

"Excuse me?" Even though she sounded mad, Luka could see the fear in her eyes. She was probably used to being told what to do, and Luka didn't like following that example, but felt he had to.

"If you're going, I'm coming with you!" Her jaw fell to the ground, and for a few seconds she stood completely still before struggling more than she had in years. But Luka didn't move one bit, and it started to scare Abby. Somewhere in her subconsciousness she forgot that it was Luka, and in stead thought it was Richard.

"Let go of me, Luka! You're not the boss of me!" Even though her voice sounded really panicked, like it would break any second, and her eyes looked more scared than anything Luka had ever seen, he didn't let go. He needed to get through to her.

"I know that. But I also know that you're gonna get yourself _killed_ if this doesn't stop!" He wasn't sure if it was his harsh tone or what he'd said that made her stop struggle and look at him like he'd just slapped her, but he didn't care. He was just happy that he could loosen his grip a little and that it actually looked like he had her attention. "And I don't want that." This time he spoke barely above a whisper. He carefully let go of Abby's arms as her look softened up, looking away embarrassed before sliding down the door way.

"Just leave me alone, Luka." He voice had cracked, and Luka hated it. He'd hoped to get through to her, but he hadn't wanted to break her.

Sighing he sat down next to her, kind of surprised when she didn't budge. "I'm serious, Abby." Continuing to look away she wiped away the tears from her eyes before they fell, staying quiet. "You need to get help!" Abby just shook her head, refusing to look at him. She didn't need help. She was fine! Wasn't she? She was alive, went to school, got good grades. No one had noticed anything, yeah she was pregnant, but she tried to forget about that. But most importantly, Eric was safe. She was keeping him safe.

"I don't need help, Luka. I can take care of myself." Closing her eyes she took a deep breath, feeling Luka's stare at the back of her head. "I always have."

"So you don't want help? You just wanna continue living like this!" Abby bit her lip. Luka sounded almost like he was blaming her for something, something she wasn't sure what was, but that he was against. "Do you like it, Abby? Do you seriously like being beaten half to death? Getting... You know." He couldn't get himself to actually say it. It was one subject both of them had avoided. He didn't know whether it was something that happened 'often', or if it was just a two-time thing. When he got her pregnant and this time. It was the only way her thighs would be as bruised as they were. But he wasn't going to ask. He wasn't sure if he wanted the answer or if she'd be willing to tell him.

"Of course not!" She'd turned to look at him, tears streaming down her face and her voice cracking more with each word. "How can you even ask that?"

"Then let me help you! Come to the hospital with me! The police station! I don't care, just let me do something to help you get out of this."

"I can't, Luka! I can't!" She wasn't just crying, she was practically screaming as well. "I have to protect Eric."

"Well that's not the way to do it!" Still crying, Abby looked shocked at him. "Don't you get it? You're not protecting him! You're subjecting him to danger by not getting help! The best way to protect him is to get him out of here, get him away from your step dad!" Deep down she knew he was right, but she didn't want to admit it. She didn't want to admit, to believe that she had been wrong. But he didn't know Richard, he couldn't know what the right thing to do was.

"I'm... I'm scared, Luka." Sniffling, her tears started flowing much quicker. She had no idea where it had come from. Being scared was one thing she'd never imagine having admitted. She tensed up as Luka put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him, trying to resist but gave up her struggle after a few seconds and leaned into him defeated.

It felt like they were sitting like that for ages, Luka carefully stroking Abby as she was laying across his lap, crying her eyes out. She was letting out all those tears and cries and sniffles she'd been holding back for the past many years, and even though she absolutely hated breaking down like this, and especially in front of Luka, it somehow felt really, really good.

"I hate him." She could barely talk, but even though her voice was so unclear, Luka could still understand her.

"I know, Abby." He rocked her slightly, stroking the side of he very wet face. "So do I." They stayed like that for a really long time, Luka stroking her hair as her sobs slowly subsided. Or well, they disappeared as the emotions and the exhaustion slowly took it's toll on her until she was out like a light.

Not wanting to wake her up, but really having to go to the bathroom, he carefully got up and picked Abby up at the same time. Walking into her room, he gently put her down on the bed, placing the thin blanket on top of her.

* * *

Luka looked up from his crossword puzzle as Abby walked into the living room with the blanket wrapped tightly around her, looking down and her previous perfect ponytail messed up from sleeping on it.

"Well hey there Sleeping Beauty." Without looking up she sat down on the chair across from him at the table.

"How long was I out for?" She spoke so quiet and her voice still had traces of sleeping and crying.

"Oh, only about..." Putting down his pencil he looked at his watch. "Eight, maybe nine hours."

"What?" It surprised Luka to see that the tears still showed on her cheeks and her eyes still seemed a bit red, but he guessed it was pretty normal considering she'd cried herself to sleep.

"I guess you needed it. And besides, it's not even 3 yet, so we've still got most of the day." She looked at him for a little while, like she was trying to think of something to say, before leaning back in the chair and just looking around the room.

"What did you do? Didn't you get really bored?" Luka shrugged his shoulders even though she probably couldn't see it.

"I killed time. Did some homework and sudoku, stuff like that." Abby just nodded, feeling awkward because of earlier.

"I'm sorry." She slowly lifted her head so she could look at him, noticing his confused look. "For ruining your weekend. You weren't supposed to know." Taking a deep breath he got up and walked around the table, sitting down on it so he could face Abby.

"Don't be sorry." He took a strand of loose hair and placed it behind her ear. "Now, I could really use some fresh air. What do you say? Wanna take a walk or something?" Staring intensely at him for a few seconds, she carefully nodded.

"Sure." She actually really wanted to get out of the apartment, so she was somehow very thankful to Luka for having asked her. She just didn't want to show him how 'eager' she was.

"Okay, let's go." Holding out his hand for her, Abby hesitatingly grabbed it and let him help her up. Not that she 'needed' it, but it was still nice.


	32. Safe?

Sorry for keeping you guys waiting, but I've been pretty busy...

I'm going to Turkey on Thursday (at like 4 AM), so I'll try to see if I can update before then, but I might not... I'll be there for 2 weeks, and since the house we're staying in doesn't have internet, I'm not sure if I'll be able to update til I come back (probably the 25th, maybe the 24th)... But I'll try to see if I can find a way before then...

Anyways... here's the next chapter... ENJOY!!

* * *

**Chapter 32 - Safe?**

Ignoring the heat, Abby pulled her sleeves down over her hands as they were walking through Lincoln Park. They had barely spoken since they left the apartment, but Abby was grateful that it wasn't one of those really awkward silences. Sure, it was a bit awkward, but not too much.

"Listen, Luka..." She stopped walking and Luka walked in front of her so they were facing each other. "Can we just please forget all of this? Pretend like it never happened?" Luka took a deep breath as he saw the pleading look in her eyes.

"I can't do that, Abby. I can't just act like nothing." He sighed as she looked away, fiddling with her sleeves. "But... I think I can make today an exception." Surprised, Abby looked back up at him. "Or at least for a little while." Biting her lip, she nodded gently.

"Thank you." She didn't have time to look up before Luka grabbed her hand and started walking again. Or well, more like dragging her after him.

"What are you doing?" Shrugging his shoulders, he didn't slow down.

"Getting ice cream." Not knowing how to reply she just followed him to the small ice cream place further down in the park.

* * *

"Ever tried Dippin' Dots?" Biting her lip as they stopped walking, she shook her head. "Well then it's about time you do." Abby just looked away embarrassed as she blushed. She always did that when he smiled at her that way. "Wait here, I'll be right back." Nodding she sat down on the closest bench, looking at the life in the park as she waited for Luka.

Normally she'd notice the kids running around and having a good time, or maybe the people walking their dogs or teenagers holding hands and kissing, but today she only noticed the opposite. The things she usually blocked out. Like the little boy who fell and scraped his knee and now wailed like crazy as his mom tried to get the bleeding to stop, or the homeless drunk who was sleeping on a bench a little further down.

"Got your favorite flavor." She got pulled out of her thoughts as Luka sat down next to her, handing her a cup full of small, round pieces or green and brown ice cream. "Chocolate Chip Mint." Giving him a small smile she picked some of them up the spoon so she could get a better look at them.

"Thanks, Luka." She took a bite, surprised by how different it tasted from normal ice cream. "Wow, this is actually really good."

"I know." He held out his cup with different colored ice cream balls. "Wanna try mine? It's cherry berry ice or something." Shrugging her shoulders she nodded.

"Sure." She was about to pick up her own spoon, but before she could he held his out in front of her with the ice cream on it, so she just took it from there instead. "That's really good as well. Not as good as mine, though." Giving him a small smile, she offered him a bite of hers which he quickly accepted.

"We should do this more often." Abby gave him a confused look. "Eating ice cream, I mean. Not... everything else." Looking away she nodded as her smile faded. She was finally having a good time and then she had to screw it all up by not knowing what Luka had meant.

"I guess." She was only whispering, and somehow she'd be surprised if he'd heard her.

"Hey," Luka started gently rubbing her arm, pulling her out of her thoughts. "Are you okay?" Nodding, she looked down at her ice cream.

"I'm fine, Luka, I just..." She took a deep breath. She wasn't really sure what she was going to say, but she needed to say or do something to end this awkwardness. "I'm just surprised of how nice you are to me." She was telling the truth, she really was surprised. Even though she felt really grateful of it, it kind of creeped her out. She wasn't used to it and she had no idea how to react to it. Putting his ice cream next to him he put his hands on both of her arms and carefully spun her around so they were facing each other.

"Don't be!" He moved a strand of hair, which the wind had blown in front of her eyes, out of her face. "Come here." Before she could protest he pulled her closer, so she was leaning up against him, feeling him stroking her hair.

* * *

Abby sat down on the couch as soon as they got home. They had been walking around all over Chicago all day, and since she still wasn't in the best condition, she was pretty beat and her feet were killing her, not that she'd ever show it or tell anyone though.

"I'll be right back, gotta call my parents." She just nodded and curled up in the corner of the couch, yawning as she stretched her arms in front of her.

Today hadn't been as bad as she'd thought it would be. Besides from that one little awkward situation in the park, they had pretty much been able to avoid all the 'touchy' subjects, and just talked about totally irrelevant and random stuff. It might seem like they were in denial, but it was what she needed.

"Damn." She looked up as Luka walked back into the room. "I'd totally forgotten about that."

"What?" Sitting down on the couch he let out a big breath.

"I have to go to a wedding shower tomorrow." She just gave him a confused look, not really getting his point. "I have to be home by noon tomorrow at the latest." She didn't move, so he turned to look at her.

"And?" She wasn't planning on making it come out like it did, but at the same time she didn't really mind. It just showed how she felt really well. She couldn't see why he was making such a big deal out of it.

"Well," He gave her a small smile, resting his hand on her knee. "It feels wrong leaving you here." Smiling knowingly she nodded and looked away, getting somewhat tired of his constant overprotectiveness, even though she had to admit she was kind of flattered. "I don't think I can... I don't want you to be alone." Sighing, she rolled her eyes and looked at him.

"Luka..."

"I know, Abby. I know you say you're fine and that you're used to it, that I shouldn't worry." He started moving a strand of her hair behind her ear, but she moved away and turned her head before he had a chance. "But I can't feel comfortable leaving, when I know you're not safe." Closing her eyes for a few seconds, Abby stood up to get away from him.

"Luka, I really appreciate your concern, but I don't need you taking care of me!"

"I know." She sat down on the table as Luka got up as well and walked towards her. "So please, Abby, come to the hospital with me. Or go yourself, I don't care, as long as you get out now, before you end up dead." Looking down she bit her lip as he walked closer. She knew that was a possibility, her dying, but she wouldn't mind if it happened. Not that there really was a chance of it anyways, because he'd always refused to do so when she begged for him to just end her life. Feeling Luka's hands carefully being placed on her shoulders, she shook her head.

"I can't do that, Luka, I already told you that." She slowly lifted her head so she was facing him, and the almost disappointed look in his eyes made her feel a bit bad. Sighing defeated he pushed the still loose strand of hair behind her ear, lightly kissing her forehead.

"Okay." Letting his arms fall to his sides he started staring at her, not really sure what to say or do.

"Are you... mad at me?" She was looking at him like she was afraid of hearing the answer, and her voice sounded like she was some little kid who had gotten caught stealing cookies before dinner. It made Luka feel like his heart had been stabbed with the sharpest butcher knife. Having Abby be scared of him and not trusting him was the last thing he wanted right now, and he surely hadn't meant to seem mad.

"No, I'm not." He was actually lying a little, but he wouldn't ever admit it. "Not at all." It wasn't true. He _was_ mad at her. Mad at her for being so stubborn, and mad at her for not wanting help, his or anyone else's. But he also knew that he couldn't hold Abby responsible for being like that. It was probably the only thing she knew about, and it was most probably her fear speaking, not her common sense. When he looked back at her, she was looking the other way, yawning like she'd pass out any second.

"Come on, Abby, let's go to bed. It's been a long day." She looked at him for a few seconds before reluctantly grabbing the hand Luka held out for her.

* * *

Putting the last laundry back in the closet, Abby let out a deep breath. It hadn't even been two hours since Luka left, and she'd already got the entire apartment cleaned up perfectly, from every little piece of dust hidden beneath the carpets to changing all the sheets.

Walking back into the living room, she sunk down into the far end of the couch. Even though she had gotten way more rest than usual these past couple of days, she still felt way more exhausted than she could remember having felt for a really long time.

Biting her lip she picked up the piece of paper which was laying on the table. There wasn't anything on it besides from Luka's cell phone number, along with both of his parents' and their pager numbers, in case she needed to get a hold of him. Curling it up in a ball she was about to throw it into the trashcan in the corner, but closing her eyes she stopped herself last minute. Luka had meant well after all. He might have gotten on her nerves by being so overprotective, and it sure didn't help when he practically refused to leave, but now she almost missed having him around.

Or well, she didn't really miss him, she was actually relieved to be alone, but she was scared. Scared of Luka, since he knew her secrets. Scared that he'd tell someone. Scared that other people would find out since he had. She hated the fact that he knew everything, or well, some things. She could no longer be herself around him, he'd always look at her differently. He wouldn't see her as 'Abby' anymore, he'd see her as this broken, fragile girl who needed pity. And she didn't want that, because she was no different from the girl she was before he found out.

Sighing she put the still curled up paper back on the table. She would put it in her room when she pulled herself together to get up, hide it somewhere just in case.

Closing her eyes she leaned back against the couch, still not understanding why she was as tired as she was. But of course, being pregnant might have something to do with it, just like it had caused her to throw up twice that morning.

* * *

It was the sound of the front door slamming which pulled her out of her thoughts, causing her body, or at least her heart, to practically jump up through the roof. It couldn't be Eric since she'd told him to stay at his friend's house, so she held her breath scared as she heard his foot steps quickly approaching the living room.

"Well hello, Abs." She felt herself automatically moving further into the corner as he was staring at her with his arms crossed over his chest. "You don't seem too happy to see me."

"What... What are you doing here?" Her voice was shaking uncontrollably, and even though she tried to never show him her fear, it was impossible when he looked at her like that, more evil than she'd ever seen him.

"Well someone called me and told me that you never showed up for work yesterday." She mentally cursed herself for not having thrown away the paper as he slowly walked towards her. "Care to explain, cause it sure doesn't sound like you?" Even if she had wanted to, she never got a chance of saying anything before he violently pulled her up from the couch by tightly grabbing her wrist.

She was staring straight into his eyes and she couldn't get herself to look away. The look he sent her had her paralyzed, and even as he pulled down her sleeve to reveal her perfectly bandaged arm, she couldn't move. She felt her eyes tearing up as he looked questionable at her. Grabbing her hair he forced her to bend forward, so he could lift up her shirt to reveal the many cleaned out, covered wounds on her back. When he pulled her back up the hot, fresh tears were streaming down her face. She couldn't remember ever having been as scared as she was right now, and judging by the look in his eyes, she had a very good reason to be so.

"Girl, you're in 'deep' trouble!" She didn't need him to tell her that, she already knew it. "Luka?" Still not able to take her eyes away from him, she nodded slightly. She could already feel the mental pain of the next many hours of pure, plain torture, already feeling as good as dead.

* * *

_Sorry for leaving you with such a cliffhanger :)  
As I said, I'll try to update before I leave, but I can't promise anything..._

Don't forget to review :P


	33. A Unique Pep Rally

Well, I'm back from Turkey. In case anyone are interested, I had an awesome time. Now, I could start telling about it, but then I'd go on for ages, so I'll spare you my rambling. (I pretty much lived on melons... so cool :P And Pepsi Light (turkish Diet Pepsi) which was amazing since we don't have it here in DK)

_Jenanis: It's kind of funny that you mention that conversation... It has already been written quite a while ago :)_

Anyways... Here is an update!! Hope you'll enjoy and don't forget to review if you want to make me happy :P

* * *

**Chapter 33 - A Unique Pep Rally**

Letting out a sigh, Luka sat down next to his brother on the bleachers in the gym at activity period.

"So are you gonna tell me what's going on?" Looking at Niko, he chose to ignore his question.

"Do you know what this pep rally is for?"

"Yes, but don't change the subject. Talk to me, Luka." Taking a deep breath, he slightly shook his head.

"I can't. At least not yet." Padding Luka's shoulder, Niko nodded.

"So you didn't work things out with Abby? I mean, you spent the entire weekend with her." When Luka just looked at him he started tabbing his fingers on the railing in front of them. "Unless of course you lied and were somewhere totally else."

"I was with her!" He sounded a bit mad, but Niko was just happy that he'd gotten a response. "And we did kind of work things out."

"Oh really? Then where is she now? And why do you still seem so sad?" Luka sent him an evil stare, but softened up again and looked at all the students still walking into the gym.

"That's what worries me, that I still haven't seen her today."

* * *

Abby looked down as she was clutching her books to her chest. She was late for school and had just gotten there in time for the pep rally. Richard hadn't let her off the hook till after school had started, so with more than 20 straight hours of beating and torture, she wasn't surprised by how crappy she felt. Not only was she very tired for having missed an entire night of sleep, but she felt really light headed and dizzy, and her body hurt more than ever. Just wearing clothes hurt.

He had given her a couple of small breaks, every time she had as good as lost consciousness. As he'd put it, he didn't want her to pass out, cause how would she be able to feel the pain from her punishments if she wasn't awake and alert. It hadn't been his usual kind of torture, even though that had been a big part of it as well. Instead he had just been beating her up, over and over again. There wasn't a single square inch of her body which wasn't excessively bruised, even her face was bruised beyond the point where she was able to cover it up.

But she still went to school. Even though she could barely walk without collapsing from the pain and exhaustion, and she knew she was way to bad off to even be thinking of school, she still forced herself to go. She knew that Luka would probably come by again if she didn't, and she couldn't risk that. Richard would be home all day, and he'd warned her. He'd told her that if Luka ever showed up again, if he ever met him, he'd force Luka to watch. Watch him hurt her. Watch everything.

* * *

She hurried towards the gym, not wanting to walk in in the middle of the pep rally. Or well, she walked as fast as she could considering all of her 'injuries'.

"Watch out!" She stopped as she had walked into one of the other students. She hadn't noticed him since her hair was hanging down in front of her face.

"I'm sorry." It had hurt. Even though he'd barely touched her, the bruises still caused it to hurt a lot.

She walked into the gym as one of the last people. She'd have to walk to the other side of the floor to get to the stairs which led up to the bleachers. Having only gone half the way, she stopped walking in the middle of the floor. She suddenly felt way worse, like all the blood and oxygen magically got drained from her head. Feeling a sharp pain in her lower abdomen, the books slowly slipped out of her grip as the whole room started spinning around her, and black and blurry dots appeared in front of her eyes.

* * *

"Hey Luka!" Putting away his cell phone, Luka looked in the direction Niko was pointing. "Isn't that her?" He didn't say anything for a few seconds, he just looked at her walking with her head bent down like she was scared of people noticing her.

"Yeah." He watched her as she walked across the gym floor. She looked so fragile, and he hated it.

When she stopped walking Luka could feel something was wrong. The way she suddenly stood still didn't look normal. Paralyzed, he watched her sway back and forth as the books she was holding fell to the floor one by one.

Knowing that something definitely wasn't right, he stood up just in time to see her body collapsing onto the floor. Not caring about how much it might hurt, Luka jumped over the railing as he heard people getting quiet, soon followed by pointing towards Abby and starting to gossip.

But he didn't care. He just hurried towards her lifeless-looking body, which was already surrounded by many teachers. Reaching her, he sat down on his knees, pushing her hair out of her face to reveal more bruising than there had been the last time he saw her.

"Excuse me, you have to go away." He ignored the teacher, just like he ignored the many students who were gathering around them. Instead he had his eyes fixed on the blood. The pool of blood she was laying in.

"What the hell happened?" It was the principle, who had just gotten to push his way through the crowd. Luka just grabbed Abby's hand as all the teachers stated speaking on top of each other. "One at a time, please. Mr. Martins?"

"I'm not sure, she just suddenly collapsed."

"She's having a miscarriage." He couldn't help but speak up, which caused everyone to go silent and turn to look at him. "Someone call 911, now!"

"Nice, Luka. You got her pregnant?" Shooting daggers at his brother with his eyes, he felt people starting to whisper again, and he had no doubt what about.

"No, _I_ didn't!" Turning back to Abby, he chose to ignore the people standing around them, carefully lifting her shirt to reveal the skinny, almost completely blackish dark blue stomach, causing multiple of the teachers and students to gasp. "Damn, it has gotten worse." He spoke quietly, but the closest people could still hear him. "Did someone call for an ambulance?" This time he was practically yelling, sounding desperate.

"It should be here in 5 to 10 minutes." Luka just nodded as he pulled her shirt back down before gently shaking her. He knew he shouldn't have left her the day before, but she kept insisting she'd be fine. She had promised him that her step dad wouldn't get back already.

"Come on, Abby. Wake up." When nothing happened he let out a deep breath. Why did it take so long for that damn ambulance to show up?

"Luka, what exactly has happened?" It was Mr. A, their chemistry teacher. The teacher who endorsed Abby so much.

"Well in case you're that blind, she apparently got beaten up!" He didn't mean to sound as bitchy as he did, but he couldn't control it. It wasn't only that he was annoyed by all the people, but he was mentally cursing himself for not having protected her.

"By who?" He chose to pretend he hadn't heard the last question. He didn't want to answer them, at least not here, when they came from the teachers, and all the students were listening. Not only because he didn't want to break his promise to Abby about not saying anything, but because he tried protecting her privacy from the couple of thousand people in the gym.

"Attention students. You must all proceed to your 3rd period classrooms now. The pep rally will be postponed till tomorrow." Not looking away from Abby, Luka could hear some of the students cursing at the announcement which kept on being repeated in the speakers. Some students left, but he could still feel many standing crowded around them.

"That goes for all of you as well." He knew that the teacher, whose name he didn't know, was probably speaking to him as well, but he ignored it as he felt more and more people leave, and instead just continued stroking Abby's pale face. "Luka, it goes for you too." Not looking up, he shook his head.

"I won't leave her again." When he heard the teacher sigh kind of annoyed, he looked up. "I need to stay with her, please."

The teacher didn't have a chance of replying before some paramedics wheeled a gurney into the gym. "Okay, can someone explain what happened here?" Luka was about to reply, but the teacher grabbed his arm and pulled him away before he could protest, as the other teachers filled the paramedics in on what happened.

* * *

"What are you doing?" He finally let go of Luka's arm as they got into the hallway. As he looked back into the gym, Abby had already been put on the gurney, and they were wheeling her out. "I could have helped. I could have told them what happened." He was pretty pissed, but the teacher didn't seem to care. Now Luka could remember where he knew him from, he was the librarian, the one the students were scared of.

Shaking his head he started walking away, but he wasn't going to his own class. Knowing that Niko's teacher was one of the ones still in the gym, he hurried to his brother's classroom.

"Niko, I need you to drive me to the hospital." The entire classroom was staring at him, but he didn't care.

"Sure, I'll take you there after soccer practice later."

"No, now!" Niko just looked at him like he was crazy.

"What? Have you lost your mind, Luka? I can't leave now, and neither should you." Luka tightened his grip on the table till his knuckles turned white, before slowly nodding.

"Fine, I'll just walk then!" Before Niko got a chance to reply, Luka was out of the classroom and on the way down the hallway. He needed to get to the hospital as quick as possible, and no one could stop him.


	34. Trauma

Here's the new chapter... I would advice you to NOT read the next bit unless you want my weird ramble... but ENJOY!!

I'm SOOO sorry it took me so long, but first my internet didn't work and then I had to go on a camp (a geek camp.. with the geek club... kinda like a danish 4H or beta club or something, except it's the 'geekiest' students from different schools in all of the Copenhagen area)... It was kinda cool though, cause I got to spend a week in my school (yep, I was on hoe base :P) and sleep in the biology room... hehe  
And well, (sorry for rambling, but I'm bored) our 'slogan' is something along the lines with: "ATU (the name of the 'club' thing) - It's awesome to be smart together!", but last night one of the boys told the camera (yeah, it was all being filmed for a documentary for the danish education part of the government) that ATU wasn't about being smart together, but being freaking DRUNK together...  
Snce well, there had after all been drinking parties EVERY single night... like half the people were completely hung over the entire week :P It was so much fun :P  
I didn't join the parties though, at least not really, but yesterday I joined them just to watch and OMG!! The boys took turns to pull the girls onto a couch they'd taken from the basement and gave them pretty ehm... graphic lap dances while the others were rubbing up against each other while pulling off their clothes and making out in nothing but theír underwear, while the girls were doing the same on the tables... It seriously felt like I had walked in on a porn movie!!  
And the coolest thing was, the teachers knew all about it! The same evening they had been handing out diplomas for all these categories we had made ourselves... Everything from biggest hungover to best drunken perfomance...  
But I guess that's what happens when you put a group (about 25 I think) of 16/17 year old danes together for a week in a school... No wonder we're the country in the world where the young people drink the most... That was just proven (since these people were after all supposed to be the geekiest teenagers in Copenhagen)

* * *

**Chapter 34 - Trauma**

"What do we have?"

"15 year old girl collapsed in school, they believe she's having a miscarriage." The paramedics started wheeling the gurney into the hospital with the doctors and nurses. "Unconscious at the scene and she still hasn't woken up. Her BP's low and she seems pretty dehydrated and underweight. She's got some bruises in her face and on her stomach." Getting her into the trauma room and attaching the IV, the paramedics walked back towards the swing doors. "Let us know how she does."

The doctor nodded and turned back to the unconscious girl on the gurney. "Can someone get her a gown? We need to get this clothes off of her."

"Hey." Dr. Kovac looked up from the patient to look at his wife entering the room. "Did any of you call for a psych consult?"

"No, try next door. I think Dr..."

"Dr. Kovac!" He looked back at the nurse as she interrupted him mid sentence. "It looks like she's regaining consciousness." She nodded towards the girl, and Dr. Kovac noticed her eyelids fluttering.

"Wait, is that Abby?" She had looked down at the patient as she was walking through the room. Taking a better look at her, Dr. Kovac could see what his wife meant. It did look a lot like her. It probably was her.

"Oh God!" Both doctors looked up to see the horrified look on the nurses' faces. And when they saw why, their facial expressions turned the same way. The nurses were taking off her pants so they could examine her and put a gown on her, but they hadn't expected her legs to look like that. They were completely bruised and bloody with cuts and burn marks.

"Abby, honey, wake up." Dr. Kovac gently shook her as her husband helped the nurses cut off Abby's shirt. Her upper body looked just as bad as her legs, except her stomach which seemed to have been the primary punching bag.

Getting closer and closer to regain consciousness, Abby moaned in pain as one of the nurses touched her back.

"Hey, turn her around." They pulled off the rest of her shirt as they turned her to the side. Closing her eyes, Dr. Kovac placed her hand in front of her mouth. "Okay, we need to get her cleaned up, and then some of these wounds definitely need to get stitched up."

"And so does some of these." The nurse held up Abby's arm as they put her back down on her back. "She's got 11 cuts on her arm, some looking a bit older than the others."

When Abby pulled away her arm, they realized she was awake, and Dr. Kovac grabbed her hand which was shaking as she tried to hold onto the sheet on the gurney.

"It's okay, Abby. You're safe. Do you know where you are?" She looked around panicked, freezing up when she realized she was practically naked.

"The hospital." Her voice was weak and she sounded scared.

"Do you remember what happened?" The nurse came over and tried putting the gown on her, but Abby struggled against it.

"I can't be here, I have to go." She tried sitting up, but clutching her stomach in pain she fell back down.

"We need an ultrasound in here, now!"

"Abby, follow my finger. Do you know what happened?" Stopping the struggling, she tried following the finger, knowing that she wouldn't get out of here anytime soon. She didn't last very long though, just attempting to follow the finger gave her a headache.

"She's got a concussion." She didn't need the nurses to say that, she already knew. It was becoming a pretty regular thing.

"My stomach started hurting, and then everything turned black." She bit her lip, not wanting her eyes to tear up. "I wanna go home." Giving her a small smile, Dr. Kovac shook her head.

"Not yet, sweetie."

"Abby, did you know you were pregnant?" She looked at the nurse who was standing on the other side of her before looking down, biting her lip.

"Yes." She spoke barely above a whisper, but they still heard her.

"We're sorry, Abby. You're having a miscarriage." Shaking her head, she felt her eyes staring to tear up even though she really tried to stop them.

"I don't care, I don't care! I don't want it anyways. He doesn't want it!"

"Who, Abby? Who doesn't want it?" Biting her lip she looked up at the ceiling as they continued to painfully examine her. Damn, she'd said too much. She wasn't good under pressure, and this sure was one of the more extreme cases of pressure. "The person who got you pregnant?" Not knowing what else to do, she nodded slightly as she felt a tear make it's way down her cheek. "Is that who did this to you?" Again she nodded. It was barely visible, but she did.

"Oww." She winced as Dr. Kovac pressed down on her side.

"Where the hell is that ultrasound?" Biting her lip she looked away, somewhat happy that the subject had been changed.

"Here it is." The nurse handed him the machine, and a few seconds later she felt the cold metal against her stomach..

"Damn. Someone call OR and tell them we'll be up soon. She's got a ruptured spleen." Feeling more and more tired, Abby looked away. She didn't want a surgery, but she knew she had no choice.

"Abby, we need to call your parents." This made her head snap back towards Luka's mom.

"No, you can't! Please!" Now tears were running down her cheeks, and she couldn't stop them. "Don't call them!" They were all looking confused at her as she fought to keep her eyes open.

"Abby..."

"Just... don't!" Her eyelids started getting heavier and heavier. "But my brother. Someone needs to pick up Eric." Her voice got weaker and weaker, and she saw Dr. Kovac nodding just as everything turned black again.

"She's out. I guess we're gonna have to double sign it." Signing the chart he handed it back to the nurse. "Take her up."

"What about her miscarriage?" He took a deep breath, looking at the pale, bruised girl in front of him.

"They're gonna have to take care of that at the same time." Nodding, the two nurses started wheeling her towards the elevator.

"You don't think that... Luka..."

"No!" She interrupted her husband. "It might seem like a possibility, but there's no way he would do that to her! To anyone!" Sighing he nodded.

"I know. I guess it's just since he spent all weekend with her, and those wounds all seemed really new..."

"But there were also some really old ones."

"I guess." He looked at his wife, and for a while both of them stayed quiet. "Anyways, I have patients to see." She nodded and he started to leave the room. "And ehm... Page me, if you hear anything."

"I will."

* * *

She leaned up against the wall as he left the room. It killed her not knowing what had happened. Even though this would be absolutely horrible no matter who it happened to, this hit her extra hard. She knew her, she knew Abby. She knew how much she meant to Luka, and she couldn't blame him. She had met her quite a few times over the past 6 to 7 months, and she had grown to really care about her as well.

She'd had a feeling all along that something was wrong with Abby, but she had still gotten more surprised than she would have thought when she saw all those bruises and wounds on her pale, skinny body. It was definitely abuse, there was no doubt about that, but she couldn't make any assumptions till she knew more. And judging by the state she was in, both mentally and physically, she had a pretty good idea that she would be seeing Abby a lot in the upcoming time. She was after all the most experienced psychiatrist in the hospital, specializing in traumas such as these.

Sighing she picked up the bloody clothes which was still laying on the floor, putting it into a plastic bag so she could give it to the police as evidence.

She looked up as the swinging doors flew up and the paramedics rolled in a gurney, followed by the multiple doctors and nurses.

"Multiple GSWs. There was a gang shooting down by the 'L'."

"Someone call the blood bank. We need lots of O-negative and blood specifics." Sighing again, she made her way out of the room without even being noticed. They were way too busy to have noticed if someone was seizing on the floor.


	35. Waking Up

Thanks a bunch for the reviews guys...

Here's the next chapter... Hope you like it :P ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 35 - Waking Up**

"Mom!" She looked up as Luka came running into the ER with sweat running down his forehead, looking like he was about to pass out any second. "Where's Abby? Did you see her?" Noticing the other people staring at them, she put her hand on his shoulder and led him away from the admit area.

"Yes, I did." She stopped walking and turned him around so they were facing each other.

"Then where is she? I need to see her." He sounded panicked, and she had to keep a tight grip on his shoulders to stop him from running away.

"She's in surgery." Seeing his scared, confused look she took a deep breath. "Her spleen has ruptured. She should be fine." He ripped his arms out of her grasp but continued staring at his mom.

"Fine? How can she possibly be fine? I though you said you saw her! I mean, she was unconscious!" Not wanting him to yell in the middle of the hallway, she pulled him into drug lock up.

"She regained consciousness again." Luka just looked at her questionable, wanting her to continue. "However, we barely got anything out of her." Not knowing what to say, Luka leaned up against the wall, feeling defeated.

"Luka, did you know she was pregnant?" While she sounded curious, she also seemed like she wasn't sure whether or not she wanted the answer. Nodding slightly, he opened his eyes to look at her.

"Yeah." Sighing, she nodded as she rested up against the wall as well.

"Please tell me you're not the one who got her pregnant." He shook his head, continuing to stare at a little spot on the opposite wall.

"I'm not." Sighing relieved, she nodded.

"Then what happened?"

"Go ahead. Go ahead and say it!" Confused, she looked at her son who now sounded pretty sad and bitter.

"Say what?"

"I told you so." Knowing exactly what he meant, she moved in front of him and moved some hair from his forehead.

"I _never _wanted to be right, honey. And I could just as easily have been wrong." Not knowing what to say, he looked away as he felt a little water build in his eyes. It wasn't till now that everything dawned on him, that he realized what was going on. It wasn't till now that the thought crossed his mind, the thought that she could have been saved if he'd just listened to his mom.

"How much do you know? Do you know what happened?" Wiping away the tears before they fell, Luka looked down at the ground.

"A lot." He didn't want to cry. He never cried. And he wasn't about to start now, even though he had a pretty good reason to.

"And you didn't do anything about it?" The tone of her voice made his head snap up. It didn't really sound mad, but more blaming.

"I wanted to, okay? I really, really wanted to!" He was practically screaming now, but he didn't care. "Do you have any idea how much I tried convincing Abby into coming to the hospital with me? But she wouldn't! She wouldn't listen!" He stopped for a few seconds to catch his breath and to see his mom looking expectantly at him. "I was gonna force her to come with me after school today, but I never got a chance! And I didn't want to break my promise about not telling anyone, I needed her to know that she was able to trust me!" She nodded.

"Okay. It's okay, honey." Opening her arms she let Luka burry himself in her embrace.

"Can I go see her?" Stroking his hair she slightly shook her head, even though he couldn't see it.

"Now's a bad time. But if you wanna make her happy, you could get her brother from school. She apparently really wanted him here." Shaking his head, he pulled away.

"No. She just doesn't want him to go home if she's not there." Nodding understanding, she put her arm around Luka's shoulders and led him out of the drug lock up.

"Luka, what happened? Who did this to her?" He sighed, not wanting to go over it again.

"I can't tell you, mom. I promised Abby I wouldn't. You're gonna have to get her to tell you, cause I don't want to lose her trust." She led him into the doctors' lounge, and as he sat down on the couch she went to fridge.

"I understand that. But look, you're gonna have to talk to the police and tell them what you know. And I'd really like it if you told me, I promise I won't tell her you told me, but it'll help me approach it the best way possible." Taking a deep breath, Luka accepted the pop his mom held out for him.

"Promise?" Sitting down on the table so they were facing each other, she nodded. "Her step dad happened." When she didn't say anything but just stared at him, he took a deep breath. "Look, I don't feel comfortable telling you anymore, I don't even have the facts straight. The only thing I know is that it's been going on for a while." Giving him a small smile, she nodded.

"Okay. Thanks." Her pager going off pulled both of them out of their trances. "I have to go, Luka. I'll let you know when she gets out of surgery." Getting up, she walked towards the door.

"And mom!" Halfway out of the door, she turned to look at Luka. "You might wanna... ehm..." He could barely get himself to say it. "Do a rape exam." Staring at her son for a few seconds, she nodded. Not knowing what to say, she left the room.

* * *

"Hey Luka!" He looked up from his food tray as his dad approached him. He'd gone up to the cafeteria to get something to eat, but so far he'd just been playing with the food. "They just told me she got out of the OR not long ago. They repaired all of the damage and they got the bleeding to stop, so she should be okay." Nodding, Luka put down his fork, knowing he wouldn't be able to eat anything.

"So can I see her now?" He knew the answer would be no, but he had to ask.

"You can't, Luka. She hasn't woken up yet, and when she does, they need to take care of the wounds first and talk to her. And besides, hospital rules says only family's allowed."

"It sucks!" He was mad, but he knew it was probably better that way. But he also knew that no matter what, no one would be able to stop him from seeing her later.

"I know. But one more thing, Luka." He just looked at his dad, waiting for him to continue. "The police is downstairs. They want to talk to you." Letting out a sigh, he pushed away his tray.

"Fine."

* * *

At first, when Abby slowly opened her eyes, she had no idea where she was. Starting to panic, she grabbed the sheet she was laying on, noticing she was attached to an IV and was only wearing a hospital gown. A short, short sleeved gown, which exposed all the skin which wasn't covered by the blanket.

"Welcome back, sleepy head." Freezing up, she looked towards the door where Dr. Kovac was standing.

"I can't be here. I have to go home!" Smiling weakly, the doctor walked towards her bed.

"I'm sorry, Abby, but that's not gonna happen anytime soon." Looking at the woman in front of her with a combination of disbelieve and fear, she tried pushing herself up to a sitting position, just to realize it was too painful.

"Let me help you." Before she was able to protest, Dr. Kovac had lifted the bed up to a more upright position. Grabbing a stool, she sat down next to the bed so she could talk to Abby, picking up her chart from the bottom of the bed.

"Usually they would send a doctor, most likely your surgeon, in here to tell you about your injuries and the surgery, but I convinced them to let me do it." Biting her lip, Abby looked down, feeling the awkward silence.

"After you passed out in the ER, we found out your spleen had ruptured." She snapped her head up, looking surprised at Dr. Kovac. "So they took you to surgery, which went well. They were able to repair all the damage, both from the spleen and the miscarriage." Softening up a bit, she looked back down at the sheet which covered her legs, slightly nodding.

"Now, we never got a chance to take care of your wounds earlier, so I'll get a nurse to bring the stuff we need to clean them." This made Abby tense up. "I used to work in the ER as well, so they're letting me do the sutures."

"I need stitches?" Giving her a sympathetic smile, she nodded.

"I'm afraid so." Trying to hide her kind of shocked and sad reaction, she just nodded. She didn't want stitches, she'd never had stitches. Stitches made it all seem so much more real.

"Luka agreed to pick up Eric from school." Abby looked up, happy that the subject had been changed. She had probably felt the awkwardness as well.

"Thanks." Smiling, Dr. Kovac carefully padded her leg through the blanket.

"No problem." Returning the smile, although smaller and weaker, she looked down. "Now, how about you get a little rest while I go get the things we need? It shouldn't be too long till I'm back, so spend the time wisely." Unable to hold back a small smile, she nodded as she leaned back in her bed.

She was scared, she knew they'd make her talk, and there was nothing she wanted less than to do so. She really wanted to run away, get away from the hospital and these people and hide somewhere safe. Not that she was safe anywhere, because he'd always find her, and he'd make her pay. For revealing the secret. For letting people know. For getting 'help'. And besides, she couldn't run away. She still felt like crap, and she'd probably just pass out again before she reached the elevator.


	36. It's a weekly thing

I'm back with an update!! Did you miss me??  
I'm sorry I'm so slow with updating lately, I've just been really busy :(

Anyways, here you go... ENJOY!!

And DON'T forget to REVIEW :P It might make me update a bit faster... hehe

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**Chapter 36 - It's A Weekly Thing**

"Heey, did you miss me?" Looking up, Abby shrugged her shoulders as Dr. Kovac re-entered the room. "I don't blame you, I wouldn't either." Smiling at Abby, she put the things on a table, which she placed next to the bed.

"So, wanna start with the arm?" Hesitating a little, Abby nodded while biting her lip. She could just as well get it over with. "Okay." She sat down on the stool, grabbing the cleaning cloth laying on the tray. "This might sting a bit, but..."

"No drugs." She was looking panicked at the syringe on the tray, like it would explode and attack her any second.

"What?" Abby didn't reply, she just continued staring scared at the syringe. "Abby, it hurts a lot to get stitches. Are you sure you don't want any sedatives? It's just a local." Not looking away, she nodded slightly.

"I'm sure." It wasn't much, but she knew Richard sometimes took drugs, and once or twice he'd even given them to her, just 'for fun'.

"Okay." She didn't sound very convinced, and it had taken her a short while to reply. "But if you change your mind, let me know, cause I can always sedate the others." Nodding, Abby looked down as Dr. Kovac started cleaning out the cuts on her arm.

"Do they all need stitches?" Picking up the needle, she shook her head.

"No. Only three of them look bad enough for stitches. The others just need tight bandages." Abby just nodded, staring at her other bruised arm. "Okay, Abby, this is gonna hurt. Are you ready?" Nodding again, she felt Dr. Kovac take a deep breath. "Okay, here we go."

Feeling the sharp needle penetrating her skin, she winced slightly and bit her lip, grabbing a tight grip on the sheet so her knuckles turned white. She knew it would hurt, but she didn't know just how much.

"Are you okay?" Still biting her lip, she nodded as Dr. Kovac continued. Sure, it hurt, a lot, but she was used to pain. "How did you happen to get these anyways? They are placed pretty weird. Usually people don't cut themselves on that side of the arm." Knowing the questions would start coming, she closed her eyes trying to ignore the pain from her arm.

"I didn't want to look at them." For a few seconds they both stayed quiet as Dr. Kovac continued suturing.

"Well that's unique. Usually people cut themselves because they like looking at the scars afterwards." Abby winced as Dr. Kovac tied the last knot on the first cut.

"Well I never wanted them. And it's not like I don't have enough scars as it... is." She tensed up again as Dr. Kovac started on the next wound mid sentence.

Dr. Kovac just gave her a sympathetic smile as she continued with the stitches. She'd seen many people refusing sedation before sutures, but Abby was definitely one of the ones who took it best. The pain might be showing in her face and her body as she tensed up, but besides from that she didn't seem bothered by it at all. It didn't stop her from talking, although her voice did sound more fragile.

"Then why did you make them, Abby?" Still looking away she felt her eyes tear up, not because of the pain, but because they were getting to the difficult part.

"He made me." She felt Dr. Kovac stop for a few seconds before going back to what she was doing.

"Who, Abby? Who made you?" Biting her lip she shook her head, not wanting to talk about it.

"I can't tell you. He'll get mad." It broke her heart to hear how scared Abby sounded, and she really wished she could take away all of her pain.

"No one's gonna hurt you again, Abby. You're safe now." She knew that Abby heard her even though she pretended to ignore her. "Who did this to you, Abby?" Closing her eyes she bit her lip as a single tear slowly made it's way down her cheek. She really didn't want to say anything, but the pressure from the silence forced her to do so.

"My... Step dad." Dr. Kovac didn't reply, and to be honest Abby was grateful about that, secretly enjoying the few minutes it took for her to finish up the wounds on her arm and wrap a bandage around it.

* * *

"Done." Wiping away the water from her eyes, she looked at Dr. Kovac for a split second before looking back down at her lap, at her newly bandaged arm. "So what do you say? Knee or back first?" Biting her lip, she looked up at the doctor.

"Knee." Giving Abby a sympathetic smile, she nodded as she carefully moved the blanket to expose Abby's legs, causing her to tense up due to the amount of revealed skin.

"So how did you get this one?" She started cleaning out the wound on her knee, the one which looked like her entire knee had been ripped up.

"I'm... not sure." Picking up the needle, she looked at Abby like she needed her approval. So she nodded, knowing this would probably hurt more than the arm, since it was right by her knee cap. Closing her eyes, she bit her lip as the sharp pain once again shot through her body. "I think it's a combination between stone floors and table corners." Surprised, Dr. Kovac looked up before turning back to the knee.

"So, did you and Luka do anything exciting this weekend?" Even though this small talk was pretty weird and out of the blue, it was better than the awkward silence or talking about herself.

"Not really. We took a walk and ate ice cream." She winced as Dr. Kovac tightened one of the stitches on her knee.

"Sorry." She gave Abby a small, apologizing smile. "So what kind of ice cream do you like? My favorite is that Ben and Jerry thing." Abby just shrugged her shoulders, trying not to let the pain affect her too much.

"Okay then." She could sense that Abby wasn't too much into the small talk, probably because of the pain, so she tried getting done a bit faster, hurrying up with tying the last knot. "So now we just need your back." Biting her lip, Abby nodded, not returning Dr. Kovac's smile. "So if I lower the bed back down, do you think you can turn onto your side?" Again, Abby just nodded as she put the blanked back on top of her leg.

* * *

It only took a few seconds before she felt the bed getting lowered, so trying to ignore the pain from her stomach, the one from the incision from the surgery, she turned around.

Even though she didn't like it, she didn't object as Dr. Kovac carefully removed the blanket from her upper body. But as soon as she felt her gown being loosened, she tensed up extremely, grabbing a tight hold on the sheet.

"It's okay, Abby, relax. I'm not gonna hurt you." When she didn't move, Dr. Kovac took a deep breath. "I have to open it get to the wounds on your back. I'm just trying to help you." It didn't really help, so she just proceeded in opening the gown, and getting a good look of her back for the first time, she couldn't blame Abby for acting the way she did.

She carefully moved the gown all the way down over Abby's shoulders, so that her entire back was exposed. "Okay, ehm..." Grabbing a new cloth she started cleaning out the multiple wounds, hating what she saw more and more. Her skinny back looked more like a cutting board or a punching bag than anything else. Not only because of the new cuts, cause there wasn't that many of them, but because of the scars.

"I guess I'll start with the one below your neck. Are you ready." When Abby slightly nodded, she picked up the needle. "Okay, here goes." She absolutely hated seeing the pain she was inflicting on this girl, a girl who had obviously been subjected to so much pain in her so far short life. She carefully dug the needle through the pale skin, feeling Abby wincing. "This is going to take quite a lot of stitches, these... 4 lined wounds." She wasn't really sure what they were, but they sure looked painful.

"Fork wounds." Her voice was very weak and barely audible, but Dr. Kovac still heard her. "It's from a fork." She felt her heart practically stop beating. How could anyone be heartless enough to do something like that?

"Abby, how long has he been doing this to you?" Abby tensed up and it took her quite a while to reply.

"A while." They might have found out her 'secret', but she wasn't going to let them know every little detail. She winced again as the needle once again got pushed through her skin.

"Okay." She was trained in handling these kinds of cases, but somehow she had absolutely no idea what to say to Abby. "You've got quite a lot of scars here. How often does he do this to you? Hurt you?" Somehow she was scared of the answer, but at the same time she knew that the chance of Abby replying was very slim.

"That depends..." Once again she had to stop due to the pain from the needle. "On how you define 'hurt'." Staying quiet for a few seconds, Dr. Kovac took a deep breath.

"Like this?" She wasn't even sure herself how to define it, the different 'levels' of hurting.

"You mean beating me unconscious?" She waited a little, but didn't get a reply. "A couple of times a month." Her voice sounded distant, like she was trying to keep out all emotions. Dr. Kovac was truly surprised that she answered, but also happy that she'd gotten through to her.

"Then what about all of these wounds and burns, Abby?" She bit her lip as a result of both the pain and the question. She so didn't want to answer, but couldn't see a way out either.

"Now or in the beginning?" It was getting harder to talk. The exhaustion added to the continuous pain was getting to her, and although it still hurt like crazy, her body was getting used to the pain and was no longer responding to it as much.

"Now." Closing her eyes she tightened her grip on the sheet.

"Every week." Abby could even feel Dr. Kovac tense up at that. "And hurting me without torturing me, multiple times a week." Feeling Dr. Kovac stop, she knew she'd shocked her. Not only because of context of what she said, but because of her honesty.

"Okay, ehm... I'm done with this one now. Wanna take a break before we do the last ones?" It was just as much for her own sake as for Abby. She didn't know why, but somehow this was creeping her out, probably because she knew the 'victim' personally.

"I just want it over with." Hearing the pleading tone in her voice, Dr. Kovac nodded, even though Abby couldn't see it.

"Okay. I'll take the one by your waist." She carefully touched the spot to let Abby know exactly where she meant, and when she didn't respond, she took a deep breath and started suturing. It seemed like they were both tired out by all the questions, so Dr. Kovac finished suturing up the last wounds in silence.


	37. Manipulated

I'm back with n updte guys :P

I'm so glad you like it :P I know I'm updting kind of slow lately, but I hve complete writers block and haven't been able to write for months!! Thnk God I ws like 15 chapters ahead :P But it still sucks, cause I'm getting closer nd closer to the point where I don't have anymore written :(

Anyways, gotta go... Need to go wash the blue hair dye out of my hair (yep, you heard/read right... I'm making blue highlights :P... which also mens my face, neck rms etc. are blue right now... I look like a smurf :D)

ENJOY!! And don't forget to leave me those lovely reviews :P

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**Chapter 37 - Manipulated**

Putting the bandages on the last wounds, Dr. Kovac started carefully closing Abby's gown again. When she didn't react at all, Dr. Kovac slowly pulled the stool around the bed with her and sat down, so they were at eye level with each other.

"Are you okay?" She was just staring straight into the air, like she was in another universe, and it wasn't till Dr. Kovac grabbed her hand, that she snapped out of it and looked down.

"I'm fine." During those few seconds it had taken Dr. Kovac to walk around the bed, Abby had put her façade and her barriers back up. Or at least she'd like to think that, as it helped her keep calm and feeling more safe.

"Okay." Taking another deep breath, Dr. Kovac gently moved some hair out of Abby's face, putting it all behind her shoulder. "Abby, are there anyone you want us to call?" She just shook her head, avoiding the doctor's gaze. "We need to call someone, you're not old enough to be by yourself yet. And Eric needs somewhere to stay while you're in the hospital." Abby shifted a little, still not looking up.

"I can take care of Eric. He's my brother." She knew that Dr. Kovac was right, but she wasn't ready to give in yet, at least not without a fight.

"I know that, Abby, but we need an adult." She put her hand on top of Abby's, who quickly pulled away. "What about your mother?" Snorting, Abby just shook her head. Her reaction kind of surprised Dr. Kovac, but judging by Abby's previous behaviour, they didn't seem too close. "Does she know anything about what's going on?" She shrugged her shoulders, feeling the tears build up in her eyes.

"I don't know." Even though she tried pretending like she didn't care, it hurt her a lot to think about the fact that her own mom didn't give a damn about her. "Probably." She felt Dr. Kovac looking intensely at her. "It's not like she'd care." Dr. Kovac tensed up a bit. She couldn't imagine any mother, any parent for that sake, wanting something like this for their kid, or not caring that someone else was hurting them.

"Are you sure about that? Maybe if we told her..."

"You won't even be able to get a hold of her." Dr. Kovac knew it probably wouldn't be the best way of approaching the subject, but she was pretty lost with how to handle Abby. "I haven't seen her in months. For all I know she could just as well be dead."

"What do you mean?" Biting her lip, she shrugged her shoulders.

"That's what she does. She leaves us for months at a time, and then she doesn't understand why I don't trust her." She felt Dr. Kovac giving her a sympathetic smile, probably not knowing what to say, judging by the long silence. "Now if she really cared about us, then she would stay on her meds and not just completely forget about us." She felt her own voice crack halfway through the sentence, and she hated feeling and looking so vulnerable.

"Meds? She's on medication?" Abby nodded. Dr. Kovac actually sounded surprised.

"She's supposed to be, but she's never stayed on them for more than a week at a time." At least not as far as she could remember. She took a deep breath, trying to pull herself together to continue. "She's... Bi-polar."

"Oh." She could hear the understanding tone in Dr. Kovac's voice, and was somehow really grateful for it. "How about your real dad, Abby? Where is he?" Once again Abby just shrugged her shoulders.

"I have no idea. Haven't seen or heard from him since he left us." Nodding, Dr. Kovac put a strand of hair behind her ear.

"When was that?" Closing her eyes, Abby sighed.

"The day before I turned 7. I don't even remember his name." Nodding, Dr. Kovac grabbed her hand, and to her surprise, Abby didn't pull away.

"It's okay. Is there any other family?" This time Abby just shook her head, still looking down. "Abby, I need you to look at me, okay?" She took a deep breath, somehow happy that her serious tone got Abby to obey. "I know this is going to be hard, but I need to know." She took Abby biting her lip as a sign that it was okay to continue. "Abby, do we need to do a rape exam?" Slipping her hand out of Dr. Kovac's grip, she curled up on the bed as she felt a sticky tear slowly sliding down her cheek.

"It's not really... rape." Even though she was looking down, she could still feel Dr. Kovac looking confused at her.

"I'm not sure if I understood this right. Did you want to sleep with your step dad?" Closing her eyes, she tried wiping away the tear, but without success. A new one just fell instead.

"I don't protest. I've never said 'no'." Her voice got weaker and weaker by each word, and so did she, emotionally. She'd never told this to anyone, not even Luka knew the details, he just knew it had happened. She had already revealed so much today, too much, and it made her feel vulnerable, really vulnerable.

"But do you want to, Abby?" Biting her lip she shrugged her shoulders, still not looking up.

"I have to." She tensed up as she felt her upper arm getting stroked.

"Have to?" She nodded carefully, hating where the conversation was going. "But is it out of your own free will? Is it voluntarily?" Taking a deep breath, she felt more tears flowing from her eyes.

"Sometimes." Okay, it wasn't really voluntarily, but she had still learned to do it without getting the instructions first. "I'll happily do it, knowing that Eric won't get hurt." It was true. It was the one thing that had always kept her from rebelling, from wanting help, knowing that Richard would take it out on Eric if she didn't do exactly as he wanted, if she wasn't good enough.

"So if there wasn't any consequences, no one else were involved, would you still want to?" She bit her lip. She didn't know what to answer. If it was Richard, she probably would, cause he'd just find some other way of getting her to willingly do it, but at the same time she knew her answer should be 'no'. Because deep down she really, really didn't want to, and she hated it more than anything.

"I... I don't know." And she didn't. She had never been able to, or allowed, to have her own opinions, and she had no idea how and what it would be like, not to be used as the 'slave' she literally was. "I guess not." It wasn't till she saw Dr. Kovac's sympathetic smile, that she realized tears were streaming down her face uncontrollably.

"Okay." Squeezing Abby's hand, Dr. Kovac stood up. "I'll be back soon with a nurse. It might take a little while, so get some rest." She brushed a strand of hair out of Abby's face as she nodded.

* * *

"How is she doing?" Sighing, she sat down on a chair, joining her husband in the doctors lounge. "You were in there for quite a long time."

"I know." She put her elbows on the table, resting her head in her hands. "There was a lot of things to go over, a lot of wounds that needed stitches." Looking up at him, she let out a deep breath. "Which she insisted on doing without sedation."

"What?" Shaking her head, she leaned back in her chair.

"God, Josef, that poor girl is so messed up. I can't remember ever meeting anyone more manipulated than her, and I still only know close to nothing about her life and what's going on in her mind." Grabbing her hand, he gave her a small smile.

"Are you sure you're okay with taking this case?" Closing her eyes, she nodded. "I mean, I'm sure they can find someone else..."

"It's fine." Standing up, she interrupted him. "I'm just... overwhelmed. That's all." She got a bottle of water out of the fridge and leaned up against it. "I'm gonna go find Luka and then go back to do the rape exam." She didn't even give him a chance to reply before leaving the room in search for her son.

* * *

"Okay, do you know why you're here?" Eric shrugged his shoulders, looking at the two cops in front of him.

"Because my sister's in the hospital?" He wasn't really sure. All he knew was that Luka had brought him to the hospital after school, but no one had told him exactly why.

"Do you know why she's here?" He shook his head.

"No. Is she okay?" He was really worried. "Abby's never sick." He couldn't imagine what it could be, causing the police to be involved in it.

"The last we heard she was okay, she collapsed in school." Eric's eyes turned wide.

"Why? What's wrong with her?"

"Eric, how's it like for you guys at home? How are things between Abby and your step dad?" He shrugged his shoulders, hating how they wouldn't answer his question.

"I don't know. I don't think Abby likes him too much." The police officer nodded and wrote something down.

"So you haven't seen anything... suspicious, going on? Anything between them which isn't supposed to happen?"

"No." Eric was getting a weird feeling. He had no idea where these questions were headed, but he didn't like it.

"I take it that you're not aware that he has been abusing her, then."

"What?"

"You had no idea, did you?" Eric shook his head. Of course he didn't, Abby was completely normal. He would have known, have noticed, if she was abused, wouldn't he?

"He hit her once, gave her a black eye, but that's all." The police officers sent him an unsure look, and Eric looked down. "It was an accident. Abby said he hadn't meant it, that she'd just accidentally been in the way." Eric knew that if the police told him it was true, then it probably was, and thinking about it, it kind of made sense. He just didn't want to admit it. And thinking about it, it did explain her behaviour lately.

He might only be 10, but that didn't mean he was stupid. He was actually pretty smart for his age, and in today's society, everyone, even kids younger than him, knew exactly what 'abuse' was, and they'd already gotten explained how to get pregnant on a video in school etcetera, so he didn't need any further information or explanation.

"Can I see her?" The guy who wrote down everything Eric said shrugged his shoulders, giving him a small smile.

"I don't know, you're gonna have to ask the doctor. But probably not, cause we still haven't seen her yet."

"Oh." He looked down, kind of disappointed that he couldn't see his sister. He usually wasn't afraid or scared of police men, but right now he really just wanted them to leave him alone, or even better yet, to wake up and find that this was all just a really bad dream, a nightmare.

"Well, you'll probably hear more from us soon." Still looking down, Eric just nodded.

"Okay." He held his breath as the two police officers left the room, not letting himself breath till he heard the door slam.


	38. Emotionally Attached

Well, here's the next update guys :P  
Hope you'll enjoy it :P

* * *

**Chapter 38 - Emotionally Attached**

Abby's head snapped up as she heard the door open, and noticing it was just Dr. Kovac, she looked back towards the window.

"Abby, this is Sarah, she's gonna help us." She didn't have to look up to know that Sarah was a nurse, and to be honest she'd feel more comfortable, less embarrassed, if she didn't know what this 'Sarah' looked like. It would feel less real, less personal.

"So," She felt Dr. Kovac grab her hand, but refused to look at her. "Do you want me to raise the bed a little?" Shaking her head, she pulled her hand away.

"It's fine." Although Abby couldn't see it, Dr. Kovac gave her a weak smile before moving to the bottom of the bed.

"Okay, I'm just gonna lift your legs." Without waiting for a reply, knowing that she most likely wouldn't get one, she put Abby's feet on the bed. "Can you hold them here for me?" After a few seconds, she received a small nod. Putting on some gloves, Dr. Kovac sighed. "Trust me, Abby. I hate having to do this just as much as you do." She felt like she had to say something, knowing how awkward and embarrassed Abby must be feeling.

Abby grabbed the sheet as she felt her gown getting lifted up over her knees. She really didn't want to look so vulnerable, but she couldn't help but feel really exposed. She was aware that Dr. Kovac was speaking to her, or maybe it was the nurse, she wasn't sure, but she blocked it out. It was the only way for her to not break down and feel even more humiliated than she already did.

Maybe this had all been a part of Richard's plan. It wouldn't surprise her if he had wanted this for her. He loved humiliating her, and she couldn't think of a worse or bigger way to do that than this. Not just the rape exam, but everything.

"Abby?" She didn't reply and Dr. Kovac wasn't sure if she just ignored her, didn't want to answer, or if she just wasn't speaking loud enough herself. The last one was definitely a possibility, cause she sure was shocked by what she saw. 'Abby' didn't look like a teenager, she looked at least decades older, like she'd been having loads and loads of sex for many years.

"Abby!" This time she received a small nod, probably because her tone had been so much more demanding. "I'm sorry, but it looks like you need some more stitches. Are you sure you still don't want sedation?" This caused Abby to look up surprised for a few seconds, before looking back towards the window, tightening her grip on the sheet.

"Yes." She knew this was going to get really painful, but she didn't care. She had gotten pretty good and blocking out the pain from getting stitches over the past couple of hours.

"Is he always this... rough on you?" Abby bit her lip. She didn't feel like answering, and especially not with a nurse present, but somehow she felt like she didn't have a choice.

"Sometimes. Depends on what mood he's in." She winced as she felt something really cold.

"So his moods affect how much he hurts you when he... rapes you?" Feeling a burning feeling, probably from Dr. Kovac cleaning out the wound, she winced, shrugging her shoulders to the question. "In what way, Abby?" Closing her eyes she bit her lip, not only because the questions were emotionally painful, but also because she knew Dr. Kovac was preparing the needle.

"Most of the time he doesn't care, he just wants to get it over with." Feeling the sharp pain from the needle, she let out a moan from the pain. "Sometimes he likes being evil," Once again she felt the needle, but this time she was more prepared. "Tying my hands on my back, doing everything he can think of to cause me as much pain as possible." She was waiting for the pain to return, but when it didn't, she figured Dr. Kovac was too stunned. "And sometimes," She now felt the pain again and knew Dr. Kovac was out of her trance. "He likes being... 'Nice'."

"Nice?" She sounded truly surprised. And Abby didn't blame her. It did sound weird. "How can he be 'nice'?" she shrugged her shoulders as she felt her eyes tear up. Somehow she was happy that Dr. Kovac was taking a break from the suturing, but at the same time she wished she wasn't. That way she could always blame the pain for her voice cracking, which she knew it would soon, and if she started crying.

"By not wanting to hurt me." She felt Dr. Kovac return to the suturing, kind of happy since she wanted it over with. Besides, she probably just thought she'd meant he cared about her, but that was so not true. "Touching me." She bit her lip, feeling the needle again. "Kissing me, licking me." She tried wiping away the tears that still hadn't fallen, but it didn't make her feel any better. "Stuff like that." She barely got the chance to finish the sentence before she felt Dr. Kovac put her legs back down. "He says he wants me to enjoy it as much as him." A single tear made its way down her cheek, but this time she didn't bother removing it.

"And do you?" That almost caused Abby to laugh.

"No," She felt more tears starting to fall down her cheeks. "I hate it!" Her voice was cracking and she started crying uncontrollably. "I wish he'd just torture me instead!" And she truly did. The pain she could handle, but the humiliation was something totally else. It was just like lately when he wanted her to take the lead, just as embarrassing. And lately he wouldn't leave her alone till he was sure she'd gotten her 'satisfaction' as he called it, wanting to hear her moans of pleasure. She didn't want to, she really didn't want to, and she refused to give in to him, so she didn't want to fake it either. And even if she did, she'd have absolutely no idea how to. So there she was, forced to be stuck with him till... well... she didn't even want to think about it.

Throwing the gloves into the trashcan, Dr. Kovac went to the other end of the bed, sitting down on the stool she'd left there earlier.

"It's okay." Grabbing one of Abby's hands, she wiped away the tears from Abby's face with her free hand, surprised that she didn't object. However, it didn't surprise her when her cheeks were just as tear strained a few seconds later. "You're safe now, Abby. He won't hurt you again. Nobody will." Biting her lip she shook her head, not bothering to move her hand.

"He will. He'll find some way to get back at me. He always does." Tightening her grip on Abby's hand she desperately, but unsuccessfully, attempted wiping away all the tears streaming down her face.

"He won't. He won't, Abby." Realizing she wasn't calming down, Dr. Kovac put her arms around her small, fragile body, holding her as tight as she could without hurting her too much.

Abby didn't object. Being embraced this way was something she never imagined being okay with, it scared her. But right now she was too weak emotionally to protest, and somehow it didn't feel as uncomfortable and frightening as she'd expected. It actually felt good. It felt like Dr. Kovac actually cared. Cared about 'her'.

"It's okay." Not wanting to let go she started carefully stroking Abby's hair, noticing that there was still blood residue in it. "You'll be okay." She'd gotten her up in a sitting position and was now rocking her back and forth, feeling how her sobs slowly quieted down. As she continued whispering calming and soothing words while stroking her hair, Abby's exhaustion slowly took over, and it didn't take long before she was completely out.

Carefully laying Abby back down, she tugged the blanked around her before looking at the nurse who was still standing in the room.

"Just go." She nodded towards the equipment they used for the rape exam, so that the nurseknew what she meant. "I'll take care of it."

* * *

"Hey Matt, have you seen the social worker?" The desk clerk pointed towards the lounge as Dr. Kovac leaned up against the counter.

"She's in there, talking to the boy."

"Thanks." Giving him a quick smile she left the admit area. She really needed to talk to that social worker.

"Hey mom!" Letting go of the door handle, she turned to face Luka. "How is she?" Dr. Kovac sighed, seeing the desperate look in her son's eyes.

"She's asleep." Luka just looked at her, waiting for her to continue, so she put her hand on his shoulder. "Luka, go home!"

"What?" His gaze turned to a combination of confusion and shock, and he shook his head. "I'm not going home."

"Yes, you are!" She took a deep breath. She knew that Luka would protest, but there was no use for him to be at the hospital. "It's getting late, and you have school tomorrow. Have you even eaten anything today?" Shaking his head he looked speechless at his mom. "I won't let you see her till after school tomorrow." Pushing her hand away he nodded.

"Fine." He sounded mad, and he was. Although she hated seeing him like that, she couldn't blame them. She would probably be pretty pissed herself, so it didn't surprise her when he walked away pretty angry.

* * *

"You needed me?" Dr. Kovac looked up to see the social worker leaving the lounge, so she motioned for her to follow her into an empty room.

"Have you found anything yet?" Crossing her arms she sat down on one of the beds.

"I've found a really good place for the boy. They're picking him up in less than an hour."

"They can't stay together?" Shrugging her shoulders, the social worker leaned up against the wall.

"Well, this family already has another boy, but he'll turn 18 in a couple of months, and they agreed to take the girl when he leaves."

"But she needs somewhere to stay until then. And she has to leave the hospital in a couple of days." Dr. Kovac was getting frustrated, and even though she didn't like admitting it, she was getting way too emotionally attached.

"The only place I could find was a single guy in..:"

"No!" Shaking her head she interrupted the social worker. "There's no way she'll be staying there." Not even waiting for a reply she left the room. She knew that she was pretty rude, but she didn't care. It had been an exhausting day, she had been off for almost 7 hours, but she'd stayed because of Abby, and now she really just wanted to go home to her family and get some rest before having to come back early next morning.


	39. Foster families

Hey guys... So, I'm back with the so far LONGEST chapter :P I guess that fits with the fact that the last chapter was the one with MOST reviews :P I really do appreciate them, A LOT!! So dont forget to leave one when you're done reading :)

Anyways, I know I take forever updating these days, but I'm trying to get myself to write... Just can't seem to get myself to do so... So I'm like ALMOST out of chapters... It's bad, I KNOW!

But well.. Maybe I'll be able to write a bit today (although don't count on anything), cause that newly leaked (as in within the last 24 hours)Britney video has made me so FREAKING HAPPY!! Sorry, I know, I'm a geek or something, still a huge Britney fanatic and never gave up on her or whatever you wanna call it, so this has definitely made my day (or year :P)

But well, then again, I might not 'have time'. It's 20:00 (8 pm) and still need to do math hand-in, english and physics for Monday (already did danish), cause tomorrow I'm gonna go out and collect money for Save The Children. Yeah, have to get some Service points SOMEHOW! Have to admit though, the Action and Creativity ones are way more fun to get... (In case you're confused, which you most likely are, blame the IBO (International Baccalaureate Organization) and their rule about NOT being able to graduate if you don't have your 150 CAS (Creativity, Action, Service) points (hours)!)

Sorry for rambling once again :P You should be glad I stopped there though, cause I can continue forever :P hehe

Anyways: ENJOY!!

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**Chapter 39 - Foster Families**

"Hey." Abby turned away from the window to look at Dr. Kovac who had just entered the room. "I can see you haven't touched your lunch." She shrugged her shoulders as the doctor pulled a stool over to the bed so she could sit down. "I don't blame you, and that's why I brought you something better than hospital food." She just starred at the bag placed on her lap, not sure whether to open it or not.

"I'm not really hungry." She wasn't even sure if it was true or not. She was too numb to feel anything right now, including hunger.

"But you need to eat something." Dr. Kovac gave her a weak smile. It was normal for patients like Abby to refuse food, but she also knew that she hadn't eaten anything in a while, so she needed to. "It's from Taco Bell. Do you like that?" Still staring at the paper bag, she nodded slightly.

"Anyways, there's something important I need to talk to you about." Sensing her serious tone, Abby looked up at Dr. Kovac, somehow a bit scared. "You do know that you can't go back home, don't you?" Even though her bed had already been lifted pretty much, this caused Abby to snap up into a sitting position about to protest, but knowing that Dr. Kovac was telling the truth, she sunk back down against the bed, looking down at her lap.

"Yeah." She could feel Dr. Kovac giving her a sympathetic smile and soon after grabbing her hand.

"Eric is already staying with a foster family, and you're gonna need somewhere to stay when you get discharged in a couple of days." Abby bit her lip. She hadn't really thought about this, and she sure didn't like doing so.

"And I won't be staying with Eric?!" It sounded just as much as a statement than a question. Looking up she saw Dr. Kovac gently shaking her head.

"At least not yet. You'll probably be able to go live with them in a few weeks, but until then we need to find you somewhere else." Looking back down she gently nodded, biting her lip. She didn't want to live with people she didn't know, she was used to being 'by herself', having to take care of everything, caring for Eric.

"But I was thinking," She took a deep breath, not really sure how to get it out. "And it probably wouldn't be too good for you to stay with complete strangers right now." Confused, she looked up at the doctor for a few seconds before looking back at her hands. "So I talked with the people at home and ehm..." Dr. Kovac turned to look out of the window, trying to pull herself together. "If you want to, you can come stay with us." Abby's head snapped up and she looked at Dr. Kovac with a combination of shock, surprise and not believing her at all.

"What?" Her voice was trembling, but right then she couldn't care less.

"It's just till you can move over to another family." Abby could feel the tears building in her eyes as she bit her lip.

"Are you serious?" Her voice cracked, but she was more surprised by the fact that she was able to talk. When Dr. Kovac nodded, a single tear slid down Abby's cheek. It wasn't the fact that 'they' had offered her to stay with them that made her so overwhelmed, it was that 'someone' had. Someone actually cared enough about her to not just want to get rid of her, wanting what was best for her and not just to hurt her.

"Would you like that?" Nodding, she tried wiping her cheeks as more tears fell.

"Yes." Even though it would be really weird staying with Luka and probably pretty embarrassing since everyone except Niko had seen her naked, she was pretty happy. At least she knew they were nice people and that they wouldn't hurt her.

Hearing someone enter the room, Abby put her book down.

"Hi." Looking up she gave Luka a weak smile as he sat down on the stool next to her. "How are you?" She shrugged her shoulders, looking down.

"I've been better." Dr. Kovac had asked her if she wanted to see Luka, and to be honest she hadn't really felt ready, but knowing Luka, and judging by what Dr. Kovac had said about him being desperate, she hadn't been able to say no.

"Okay." Luka wasn't really sure what to say or how to act. Even though he'd already seen her beaten up, she looked so different, so much more vulnerable and fragile, laying in a hospital bed in a gown, with an IV attached to her hand and lots of bandages and band-aids covering her multiple wounds and bruises. Even her face looked worse than it had during the weekend, but it was probably because it had been beaten up some more since he'd left her. It was still nothing compared to her body, but it hurt him more than he'd ever thought possible to see her so pretty, no beautiful face messed up like that.

"Taco Bell?" He nodded towards the bag on the table, mostly to break the awkward silence, but also because it kind of surprised him.

"Your mom brought it. I didn't eat all of it, so you can have it if you want."

"It's okay, I already ate." Abby just nodded, still not looking at him. "I would have been here earlier, but my parents would ground me if I skipped any more school or soccer practice." Shrugging her shoulders she bit her lip. She was actually pretty happy that he hadn't showed up till now, and she wouldn't have minded if he hadn't at all. Not that she didn't like having him around, it just still felt too awkward.

"So... school?" She looked up at him kind of scared. She was pretty sure that he knew exactly what she meant.

"Well," He sighed, knowing he'd probably only hurt her more by telling her. "Everyone saw it when you collapsed, saw all the... blood." Abby's eyes turned wide. She hadn't been able to remember exactly what happened, and now she just felt even more scared and embarrassed. "So it's safe to say that you've literally been the only thing people have talked about... gossiped about." Looking down she nodded. She could easily imagine all the things being said about her, and although she was usually really good at ignoring rumors and gossip, this really killed her.

"How bad?" Somehow she didn't want to know, but at the same time she felt like she needed to.

"Bad." She looked back up, giving him a look which told him to continue. "I was swarmed with questions, but I never told anyone anything." Although this made her a bit relieved, she could see he was holding something back, so she urged for him to go on. "They know you were beaten, but that's it. They don't know anything about... the abuse." Biting her lip she looked down again.

"Thanks... For not saying anything." He carefully moved a strand of hair behind her ear so he could see her face, giving her a small smile which she didn't return.

"No need to thank me." Hating the awkward silence, he got out a book from his backpack.

"Anyways, I was wondering." Abby looked up at him confused as he placed the math book on her lap. "Since you're so good at math, do you think you could help me with a couple of problems?" Biting her lip she looked at the book in front of her, the book she finished the year before.

"I guess." She started fiddling with the bandage on her arm as he opened the book. She knew that he probably didn't need help at all, since he was pretty smart himself, but she didn't mind. It was a good distraction from reality.

Eric took a deep breath before following the doctor into Abby's room. At first she looked completely normal, she was sleeping on her side, her back turned towards him. Of course the hospital gown looked a bit... unusual, but it could just as well have been a 'white-ish' shirt.

But walking around the bed he felt his heart stop. Most of her body was covered with the blanket and the gown, but her arms were laying in front of her, and they were bruised. Very bruised. Or well the one arm was, the other was mostly covered by the bandage. Her face scared him more, though. The only time he'd ever seen her with a bruise, was when she had a black eye, and this was way worse.

"Abby?" He grabbed her hand hesitantly, somehow scared of waking her up. When her eyes quickly started fluttering, he pulled back abruptly.

"Eric," Noticing her brother she pulled a bit back, turning around so she was laying on her back as Dr. Kovac helped her raise the bed to a sitting position. "What are you doing here?" It wasn't that she didn't want him there, but she didn't want him to see her like that.

"I wanted to see you." Biting her lip she looked down at the blanket. She was trying to cover up her arms, but Eric stopped her by placing his hand on top of her bandaged arm.

"I'm sorry, Abby." Her head snapped and she looked at him truly surprised. He sounded like he really meant it, but Abby was just confused.

"What for?" She really didn't know why, and she couldn't see any reason for why Eric should be apologizing.

"For never having noticed anything." Sighing, Abby gently shook her head.

"Eric, I didn't want you to notice it. I hid it from you on purpose." He looked down at the floor for a few seconds before looking back up at Abby.

"But why didn't you ever say anything?" She started fiddling with the blanket, trying to come up with a good reply, but couldn't think of anything.

"I... I couldn't." She silently cursed whoever had told Eric. Couldn't they just have come up with some good excuse for why she was in the hospital?

"But I'm your brother, Abby. You can tell me everything." And he meant it. She meant so much to him, and he knew that he could tell her everything, so he had hoped she felt that way as well.

"No, Eric." She was carefully shaking her head, looking at him really apologizing. "Not this." Biting her lip she looked down at her hands.

"But why?" Still biting her lip she looked back up.

"I was trying to protect you." Seeing his confused look she sighed. "If you knew anything, if I had told you, he would have hurt you as well."

"Is that why he... hurt you?" This time it was Abby who looked confused at him. "Because you knew something you shouldn't?" Looking back down she shook her head while biting her lip.

"No."

"Then why?" He really wanted to know. He didn't want anyone hurting his sister, and he couldn't see why anyone would. She looked back up at him, or more specifically, staring right through him. She was biting her lip, and she looked like the fate of the world depended on her answer. When she didn't say anything, Dr. Kovac put her hand on Eric's shoulder.

"Because your step dad was... is a very bad man." Abby was looking away, trying really hard to avoid Dr. Kovac's stare. She was somehow really happy that she had cut in, knowing that if she hadn't, she'd have to have said something herself, and since she sucked at lying to her brother, she'd probably said something like 'she deserved it'. That's probably also why Dr. Kovac broke in, because she knew Abby well enough by now to know that's what she would have said.

"What he's done, Eric, is very wrong, and it's _not_ Abby's fault." Yeah, Dr. Kovac definitely knew how she felt. "And it's not yours either. So don't even think about blaming yourself." Abby knew she wasn't just talking to Eric, but to both of them.

"Anyways, Abby?!" Knowing Dr. Kovac pretty well by now, she could hear that the subject was getting changed, so she carefully looked back up. "See those people over there?" Not even looking in the direction the doctor had pointed, she nodded. Of course she'd seen the people standing in the room, not too far from her bed. "They are Mr. and Mrs. Johnson. The family that Eric is staying with." Biting her lip she looked towards them, silently grateful that they didn't try greeting her by shaking hands or hugging, but just nodded. Normally she would have nodded back or at least smiled, but she really couldn't get herself to do so, not even if she tried.

"I can't wait for you to come stay with us, Abby." She looked back at her brother who actually looked a little happy. "It's great. I got my own room, and they even have this really cute dog." Yeah, he definitely did seem happy when he talked about it.

"So you like it there?" She couldn't help it, but she needed to be sure. He was after all her baby brother and her biggest priority.

"Yeah, a lot. They're really nice." A small smile formed on her lips, the first real smile in many days. Seeing her brother so happy meant a lot to her, it meant that she didn't have to worry as much about him, and when he was happy, she was happy.

"That's good." Her smile quickly disappeared, but at least it had been there.

"Eric." Both kids looked up at the Johnsons as they carefully stepped closer. "We have to go. School starts soon." This caused Abby to look at clock on the wall, and to her surprise it was still really early in the morning. Eric just nodded and turned back to his big sister.

"Abby, can I hug you?" She just looked at him a little confused. "Because I really want to hug you right now." Giving him another small smile, although this time forced, she nodded slightly. How could she possibly say no to him. "Thanks." Before she knew it his arms flew around her neck. She hugged him back, and even though he didn't hug her too tight and was very careful, it still hurt like hell, and she knew it showed in her face and body language. When he finally pulled back she allowed herself to relax again, but she didn't want Eric to see that.

"Did I hurt you?" He looked truly concerned, and Abby cursed herself internally for not being able to cover up her pain very well.

"No, Eric." She shook her head, trying to reassure him. "Not at all." Giving him another forced smile, she messed up his hair as he started walking away from the bed.

"I'll see you soon, Abby." She just nodded as his brother followed his new... foster family out of the room. It still seemed so unreal and she could barely get herself to think about it.

"You really care a lot about your brother, don't you?" Her head snapped back towards Dr. Kovac. She'd totally forgotten all about her being there.

"He's my brother, of course I do. How can you even ask that?" It didn't come out just as powerful as she wanted, but she knew the doctor understood what she meant.

"And it really shows." She looked down, kind of confused. "He's lucky to have a sister like you, Abby. Not many people are as caring about their siblings as you are." Feeling pretty awkward and somehow... embarrassed?, she bit her lip as she looked away. She hated compliments. "And I have to say, you've done a pretty good job raising him. He's a great kid." She carefully looked back up as Dr. Kovac gently stroked her hair.

"Anyways, try to get some more sleep. I'll be back later to do a wound check." Nodding, she turned back to her side as Dr. Kovac put the bed back at it's normal level.


	40. Going Home

Guys, I'm so, so, SO sorry that it has taken me so long to update, but I have been so freaking busy!! Just this week for example, I havent had any time off AT ALL!!

Monday I can't even remember what I did, Tuesday I had ATU (the geek club thing) right after school and wasn't home till past 9...  
Wednesday I had to do CAS stuff (that weird IB getting points thing) after school and then had cheer practice (we got profile pics taken for the website.. hate pictures) and again wasnt home till almost 10..  
Thursday I picked up my sister and took her to practice and again it was 9 before we were home..  
Friday I went to my cousin's place right after school and helped her get ready for her goodbye party, snce she's going to California on monday (hate her, she gets to live in Santa Barbara for 4 months and then Costa Rica for 5) and wasn't home till 2 this morning...

Then today, I had to go to a tumbling workshop from 9 through 17 (5 PM) and the same again tomorrow, but guess what, not too far into the workshop, we did leaps. And well, I did a sideleap, and BAM!! My knee CRACKED as I landed. After having rested for 10 minutes or so, I decided that I would try to join them again (they were now doing cartwheels) even though my knee still felt a bit weird.. and BAM!! Once again, my knee CRACKED!!  
Apparently, I stretched my ligaments and overworked them, so you have those to thank for this update, case if that hadn't had happened, I would still be learning back flips and not sitting here with my knee bandaged and probably not allowed to go tomorrow!!  
It sucks though!! It hurts like hell whenever I walk, and I cant do ANYTHING!!

Anyways, better stop rambling, cause have to do a math hand-in, chem hand-in, economics hand-in and english hand-in for Monday (eco for tuesday though).. Luckily the danish commentary and the physics report arent till later on (physics wednesday, danish next week).. but that'll take me FOREVER to do...

So **ENJOY** this update guys.. I'll try to update soon, and remember, I DIG **REVIEWS!!** (and thanks to the ones who have reviewed already :P) They'll definitely help my depressed mood (from hurting my knee and not being able to participate in the workshop) and possibly, or very likely make me updat efaster :P

**

* * *

Chapter 40 - Going Home**

Abby was sitting in a chair in the hospital room, looking out of the window at the people on the street. She had always enjoyed people-watching, and well, right now was the perfect time to do so. She was just waiting for Dr. Kovac's shift to end so they could go home.

Home..? Well it wasn't really... home, but it was as close as it would get. It still sounded so weird though, and she had far from gotten used to the idea, not just that she'd be living with Luka's family, but everything.

"So, are you ready to leave?" Looking away from the window she nodded slightly, automatically pulling her sleeves over her hands.

"Yeah." Dr. Kovac had given her the clothes earlier. She had no idea where she's gotten it from, but she didn't care. It was long sleeved and covered up everything that needed hiding, so that was enough for her. She'd had to tell the police about Richard and where they lived, stuff like that, so since her apartment was still practically considered a crime scene, she wouldn't be able to get her stuff for at least another couple of days.

Biting her lip she carefully pushed herself up from the chair. Even though she was used to being in pain after getting beaten up, it had never been this bad. And it wasn't just because of all the bruises she hurt, the surgery had also added a lot to it, so she could barely walk. Or well she could, but slowly and painfully.

"Are you okay?" She stopped walking and looked at Dr. Kovac, hating herself for showing she was in pain.

"I'm fine." She looked down as the doctor carefully stroked her still wet hair. The nurse had helped her wash it earlier, to get all the blood and greasy stuff out of it, along with washing the rest of her body. It had been pretty difficult, considering none of her many stitches were allowed to get wet, and pretty uncomfortable. Luckily she could get them out in about a week so she could take a real shower.

"Okay then. Let's go." Abby just nodded as she followed Dr. Kovac out of the room. "I'm gonna warn you though, we're eating Croatian tonight." She just looked up confused, not getting why she needed a warning. "It's a tradition we have, we eat Croatian every Wednesday." Nodding she continued to walk. She wished she had traditions, something that was special for her family. Or well she did, but not the kind of traditions normal people have. It would definitely be really weird living in one of those normal homes, with normal people. How was she ever going to figure out how it all worked?

* * *

Abby took a deep breath as Dr. Kovac stopped the car outside the house. The entire ride home had been quiet, at least from Abby's side. Dr. Kovac had tried making conversation a few times, but had quickly figured out that Abby wasn't up for it.

"So, are you ready?" Biting her lip she carefully nodded as she opened the car door. She didn't really feel ready, but she couldn't share that. To be honest, she was actually a bit scared, maybe even a lot. Terrified!

She followed Dr. Kovac along the path that led to the front door, walking as fast as she could with her injuries, and carefully climbed the few steps. "We still have a bit of time before the others get home." Once again she just nodded as the doctor unlocked the door, holding it open for her to enter the hallway. "Well, you've been here a couple of times, so you don't need me showing you around, do you?" Shaking her head she used her feet to take off her shoes.

"Can I ehm... Go use the restroom?" She was looking down, but she could still feel Dr. Kovac smiling sympathetically at her.

"Of course honey, you don't even have to ask about that. You live here as well now, remember?" Still looking down, feeling embarrassed, she slowly nodded and walked towards the bathroom as Dr. Kovac went to the kitchen. She didn't even need to go, but she'd always used restrooms to escape from things. It was usually the one place where she could lock the door, where people would leave her alone and not invade her privacy. And right now she needed that, she needed to get away from... Everything.

Locking the door behind her, she sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her lip was cracked and the big bruise on her forehead was still very apparent, very... bad and scary-looking.

Biting her lip, she carefully lifted her shirt. During her entire hospital stay she'd avoided looking at her body as much as possible. Not because she wasn't used to the wounds and the bruises, cause she was, but she felt it had gotten looked at enough by all the doctors and nurses. She had to admit that her stomach looked worse than ever before, but what she really wanted to see was the wound from her surgery. But since it was still covered up, that was pretty impossible. Lifting it up a bit further she revealed her ribs. She hated the fact that every single one of them were visible, and it didn't help very much that they were full of bruises and burns. It was practically a miracle that none of them had broken or cracked, but had only gotten bruised.

Letting out the air she was holding back, she let go of the shirt so it fell back down. She sat down on the closed toilet seat and leaned back, closing her eyes. She knew she had to get back out there, if she didn't want Dr. Kovac to get worried, but she really didn't want to. She liked her, she really did, she liked this family, but it just felt too weird, too awkward.

* * *

Abby looked up as someone knocked on the door, but looked back down when she saw it was Luka.

"Hi." He sat down at the other end of the bed, carefully resting his hand on her knee. "What are you reading?" Shrugging her shoulders she placed the bookmark in the book and put it on the table as she finished the paragraph.

"Just some random book from your living room. Not very interesting." Nodding, he turned the book around so he could see the cover.

"Well if you want to we can go by the library one of these days." Looking up at him for the first time, she gave him a small, forced smile. Going to the library would mean going out in public, but it would beat being stuck in practically strangers' house with nothing to do.

"Sure." She looked back down as Luka started stroking her arm, but she stopped herself from moving it, knowing he meant well. "When did you get home? I didn't hear you." Placing a piece of her slightly wavy hair behind her ear he made her look back up.

"Just now." Abby just nodded, not sure what to say. "Mom asked me to go get you. Dinner is as good ready." Taking a deep breath, she looked seriously at Luka.

"What does Croatian food taste like?" A big smile formed on his face. Not just because he had expected something way more deep and serious, but because it was like the old Abby was back for a few seconds.

"You'll like it..." Abby just stared at him suspiciously.

"Are you sure?" She interrupted him, but he didn't care.

"I think..." Not being able to stop herself from smiling either, she slapped his shoulder as hard as she could, which wasn't very hard at all considering how weak she still was.

"It's not funny." She attempted to stop smiling without success, causing Luka to start chuckling. "I'm trying to be serious here."

"Well so am I." Blushing, she looked down kind of embarrassed, although not knowing why. It felt good being able to laugh again and not just feeling so pitied all the time.

"Hey," Lifting her face so she was looking at him, he was about to ask her if she was okay, but decided against it, knowing she was probably really tired of that question. "Just watch out for the sauce, my mom always tend to make it way too spicy." Smiling slightly, she didn't bother moving away his hand.

"But I love spicy food." Returning the smile, just bigger, he carefully moved some hair away from her face.

"I know you do. Just thought I'd give you a heads up before you poured half of the salt and pepper in." When she didn't respond, Luka carefully started stroking the side of her face. "Do you know how beautiful you are?" Blushing, she pulled her head away and looked down as her small smile quickly faded.

"Luka..."

"I mean it, Abby." Carefully grabbing her chin again, he forced her to look at him. "Even with all the cuts and bruises you're still the most beautiful girl." As her cheeks turned more and more red, Luka just smiled.

"So don't be embarrassed about them or your scars." She really wanted to look away, but couldn't get herself to do it. "When I was younger I used to love bruised and even scars, even on myself. They each have their own story and history, and they are a part of you. Think of them as tattoos." As he moved his hand her face slowly fell so she was looking down, but she was still paying attention to what he was saying. "I know that your scars don't exactly have the most pleasant stories behind them, and that you'd probably just want to forget all about them, but that's not possible. Just don't let them control your life, okay? Because I... We care about you, and it wouldn't matter if you shaved your head and got a hundred times as many scars as yo have right now, I wouldn't love you any less." She felt a small tear slide down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away, not wanting Luka to see it. She wasn't sure whether or not Luka had just told her he... loved her, but she chose to just ignore that part.

"I didn't." She was still looking down, not wanting to look at Luka. "I never let it affect me when nobody knew." Biting her lip she looked back up at him, fighting to keep her tears back. "But it's really hard not to when everyone keep pitying me and feeling sorry for me. I hate it, and I wish you'd all just treat me like normal, like you'd treat everyone else." It wasn't till she was done that she realized how weak she had sounded, but judging by the look on Luka's face, he had understood what she'd meant.

"Okay." Giving her a sympathetic smile, he gently put her bangs back behind her ear before carefully stoking her hair. She closed her eyes as he leaned closer to her, and she had to admit that his soft kiss on her forehead felt really good, even though it didn't last very long.

"Let's go." Opening her eyes she carefully grabbed his hand and let him help her up. "They're probably waiting for us."


	41. The Key

Once again, sorry for the long wait...

Thanks a bunch for the reviews guys (although I'd LOVE some more :P Good or bad, long or short, me no cares :P)

ENJOY!! And sorry for it being short...

* * *

**Chapter 41 - The Key**

Sitting on her knees on her bed, Abby was leaning up against the window by resting her elbows on the frame in her room. _Her room_. It just sounded so weird, she'd never had her own room before. Or well, it wasn't really _her_ room. It was the guest room, but for the next multiple weeks it would be _hers_.

She sighed as she looked at the moon, the full moon, which somehow seemed way bigger and brighter than she'd ever seen it before. But it was beautiful, and she couldn't tear her eyes away from it. She had always loved the moon. The stars. The dark. The night. She wasn't sure why, but it somehow always made her feel calm. Or not _calm,_ calm, but it was like it had this depressing, melancholic effect, making her feel a bit sad, but also made it easier to just leave reality and forget everything. Like she could disappear among all the bright, shining, beautiful stars.

She had no idea what time it was, but it was definitely late and way past midnight. She hadn't been able to fall asleep, and she was pretty sure she'd been sitting there for hours. Dinner had been okay, she actually liked the food, even the spicy sauce, and luckily it hadn't been as awkward as she'd feared. Afterwards she'd just retreated to her room and finished the book, as the boys had done their homework. She'd thought about joining Luka, but when she figured out it was Spanish she'd changed her mind. The only time she'd been out of her room was to use the restroom and brush her teeth, stuff like that.

* * *

She practically flew into the air as someone placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Abby." Trying to get her breathing back to normal, she placed her hands back on the window frame and looked at Dr. Kovac for a short second before turning back to the window. "I figured you were still up. I tried knocking, but I guess you didn't hear me." Tightening her grip so her knuckles turned white, she slightly shrugged her shoulders. "Can't sleep?" Shaking her head she leaned back down on her elbows, silently cursing a small cloud for moving in front of the moon.

"It's weird." Pushing herself away from the window, she let her body sink down onto the bed. Pulling her knees close to her body, she tightly wrapped her arms around them as Dr. Kovac started carefully rubbing her arm. "I can't remember when the last time was I went this long without him..." Even though her voice had been weak from the beginning, she slowly trailed off and leaned her chin on her knees.

"Hurting you." Dr. Kovac tried finishing off the sentence, but Abby just shook her head, never lifting her head.

"No. He could go for days without that, but not..." She couldn't get herself to say it. She wasn't sure why, cause she usually didn't let it get to her, but she just couldn't.

"Raping you." Closing her eyes she nodded slightly as she felt the water build up in her eyes, somehow happy that the doctor had finished the sentence for her.

"I just keep expecting to wake up by him putting his hand over my mouth and... you know... with Eric sleeping right next to us the entire time." She didn't realize she was crying till she felt Dr. Kovac wipe away her tears.

"How often did he do that to you, Abby?" Biting her lip she looked back towards the window.

"Do you mean in front of Eric, or just in general?"

"Just in general." Closing her eyes she took a deep breath before looking back at Dr. Kovac. It was one thing she'd been trying not to share, but figured she could just as well say it since she was already being so open. She didn't know why she was, because she didn't really want to be, but somehow it did feel good to get it out, although it also made it seem so much more real.

"Every day." She looked back down at her feet as Dr. Kovac hid her shocked, but at the same time not too surprised reaction. "Sometimes more often." She silently cursed herself for having braided her hair, wishing it had been hanging down over her face instead.

Not really knowing what to say, Dr. Kovac gently stroked Abby's arm which was exposed, since she was sleeping in one of Luka's oversized t-shirts. She wanted to ask more questions, to get more information out of her, but at the same time didn't feel like knowing any more, since it only got more horrible with each word Abby spoke.

"It's okay." She moved a strand of loose hair behind Abby's ear. "Nothing's gonna hurt anymore." As Abby shrugged her shoulders, Dr. Kovac pulled her hand back and took a deep breath. "Which reminds me, there was a reason for why I came in here." Not moving, Abby looked up confused. "I brought you something." She held out her hand and Abby hesitantly sat up and reached out for it.

"A key?" Biting her lip, she looked at the little grey key in her hand.

"It only works for this room. I thought you might like to... that you would feel safer, if you could lock the door." Still staring intensely at her hand, she closed it. It did make her feel better, just the fact that se was able to lock it if she wanted to. "I have a key myself that works for the whole house, but I don't use it unless it's absolutely necessary." Biting her lip she looked up at Dr. Kovac, trying to return her smile, but not really succeeding as her body was slightly shaking. "Are you okay?" Tightening her grip on the key even more, she nodded.

"I'm just cold." Dr. Kovac gave her a sympathetic smile. When you were as skinny as Abby it was pretty hard to keep warm, and it didn't help either that she was still pretty sick and recovering from a miscarriage and surgery.

"Okay." She moved the duvet to the side before stroking the side of Abby's face. "How about you try to get some sleep?" Biting her lip, she carefully nodded her head. Taking a deep breath she hesitantly placed the key on the night stand and slowly laid down, careful not to do anything which would make her wounds hurt. It felt pretty awkward as Dr. Kovac tucked her in, but she didn't care and she couldn't complain, she actually liked it.

"Goodnight." Turning to her side, she took a deep breath.

"Dr. Kovac?" She let go of the door handle after having opened the door and turned to face Abby. "Thank you." Her voice was weak, but she felt the doctor walk back towards her.

"What for?" She didn't need to thank her, just knowing she was safe was enough.

"No one has ever cared about me before." Sighing, Dr. Kovac sat down on the bad, playing with a strand of her hair.

"That's not true, Abby." She took a deep breath as Abby rolled into a ball, still laying on her side. "We both know that Luka cares more about you than I've ever seen him care about anyone. And Eric, well, anyone can see that he adores you and look up to you like crazy." Biting her lip, Abby tightened her grip on the duvet.

"That's only because he has to. He knows that no one would take care of him if I wasn't there." She felt Dr. Kovac stroke her cheek, and she had to fight to keep her eyes open as her exhaustion was finally taking its toll on her.

"I don't believe that. Trust me Abby, that boy loves you more than anything." When she didn't respond, a smile formed on Dr. Kovac's face. She had known Abby was really tired, so it didn't surprise her at all that she fell asleep so fast. Carefully kissing her forehead, she got up and left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

* * *

Abby walked into the kitchen with the blanket tightly wrapped around her, already having brushed her hair out of the ugly, messy, morning hairdo, so it was hanging wavy down her back from the braids.

"Well good morning dear." Leaning up against the counter she gave Dr. Kovac a small smile as she started the dishwasher.

"Morning."

"You missed the others, they just left." Shrugging her shoulders, Abby sat down on one of the chairs.

"I know, I heard them leave."

"Ahh." Dr. Kovac gave her a small smile as she went to the fridge. "Waited for them to leave before coming downstairs?" She wasn't sure whether it was a question or a statement, so she just returned the smile.

"Yeah, something like that." Or well, that was pretty much the reason. Not because she didn't want to see them, she just thought it would be easier not to.

"I see." She turned to look at Abby. "You like eggs?" Biting her lip she nodded. "How do you want them?" Still biting her lip she thought for a few seconds.

"With ketchup." Slamming the refrigerator door she brought the eggs to the counter.

"Eggs with ketchup coming right up." It only took a few minutes before the plate was placed in front of her

"Thanks." Dr. Kovac just gave her a smile and padded her shoulder.

"No problem, honey. I'm gonna go get laundry started. Just put the plate in the sink when you're done and go get dressed, cause we have a few errands to run." Picking up the fork she smiled back.

"Okay." As Dr. Kovac left the room, Abby started eating her breakfast, starting off with the cute, little chocolate chip pancakes. She couldn't remember when the last time was she had gotten pancakes, least of all with chocolate chips in them, but she absolutely loved them. What better way to start the day than eating some of her favorite breakfast food and drinking nice, cold orange juice?


	42. Coping Slowly

Here's the next chapter guys and, as much as I hate to tell you, the last... NO, not THE last, but don't have anymore written for the moment... Or well, that's a lie, got half a chapter...  
Trust me, I really HAVE been trying to write, but havent been able to since the beginning of July.. I SUCK!! You're allowed to verbally kill me, maybe that's what I need to get my brain working again..  
(It's seriously dead, I can't even get myself to write a 400 word exercise for english, which is a piece of cake... I've had like 2 weeks, one of which has been fall break, and gotten 78 words written... but it's mostly cause I simply can't be bothered I guess...)

Anyways.. Hope you'll enjoy it... And don't forget, me loves those reviews... and you're MORE THAN WELCOME to give me inspiration, ideas etc...

* * *

**Chapter 42 - Coping slowly**

Sighing, Luka sat down at his desk in chemistry. He'd just had a test in English and he was pretty sure he'd completely flunked it, or at least not done very well. Considering everything that was going on, he had completely forgot to study.

"Is this true?" He looked up as three girls threw the new school newspaper on his table, the same three girls who were always after Abby.

"Excuse me?" Rolling her eyes, one of the girls found the news/gossip section and pointed at the top left corner. Luka was just staring at it speechless, reading the text over and over.

"Well?" He practically threw it back at the girl who was standing with her hands on her hips. "Is it?" He took a deep breath, not really sure what to say.

"I can't tell you." Snorting, the girl walked away, followed by the two others. Luka just closed his eyes as he let his head fall onto the table. How was he ever going to tell Abby that everyone from their school knew she had gotten abused? Sure, it was still just a rumor, but that didn't make it any less horrible.

"Good morning, class." He hadn't even heard the teacher enter the room, but reluctantly sat up as the class started. "I've got your tests for you, and although they were okay, I had hoped for better." Luka was the first to get his test back, and he was pretty happy about his 86 , since chemistry wasn't exactly his best subject. "I see Abby's not back yet:"

"I'll give it to her." He felt everyone's eyes on him, but he didn't care. He just took the papers as the teacher hesitantly handed them to him. He didn't look at it till the teacher went back to the front of the classroom. It didn't surprise him when he saw the 100 in the top corner, but he still couldn't understand how she was able to do so well in school with everything that was going on in her life.

* * *

"Hey." Abby looked away from the TV and gave Luka a small, forced smile. "What are you watching?" Shrugging her shoulders she put the remote on the table in front of her as Luka joined her on the couch.

"Just surfing around." She bit her lip as Luka continued going through the channels, feeling pretty awkward. "So how ehm... was school?" Taking a deep breath he looked at her. She actually looked a bit scared and he couldn't blame her, he would have been worried about rumors and gossip as well if it was him.

"It was okay, pretty much like it always is." He knew that he was lying and that it was probably really stupid, but he couldn't get himself to tell her the truth. He couldn't bear the though of him making her hurt even more. "You got a 100 on your chemistry test, though." Once again she just shrugged her shoulders. She couldn't really care any less about some test she took a week ago.

"What about you?" He put the remote down after having given up on trying to find something worth watching, stopping on some commercials. "What have you been up to today?" she looked at him for a short while before turning back to some toothpaste commercial on TV.

"Went grocery shopping with your mom and went to the hair dresser." It wasn't till she mentioned it that he noticed her hair looked different.

"Your highlights are gone!" He could kill himself for not having noticed it before. "It looks... really pretty." And he meant it. He had liked the highlights on her, but he had to admit that the shiny, dark brown looked just as amazing.

"Your mom thought I might want a hair cut." He picked up a piece of her hair but couldn't see any difference besides from the color.

"That's weird, she's always adored long hair. Once she almost killed our aunt because she cut 10 inches of our cousin's hair." Abby just took a deep breath and half shrugged her shoulders, not seeing the point in his ramble but knowing it was just to keep the conversation going.

"Well apparently, it's normal for people, and especially females, to change their appearance after having been through some kind of trauma. And especially this kind." The last part she only murmured, but she knew he had heard it.

"Oh." Luka felt like hitting himself for not having though of that, since it seemed pretty obvious.

"And usually, girls with long hair cut it short." She gave him a small smile, and he could easily see it was fake. He smiled back anyways though, happy that she hadn't been one of those girls. He loved her long hair, but of course, if cutting it off helped her cope, then that would be absolutely fine with him as well.

He had been too busy staring at Abby to acknowledge the TV was still on, so when he saw what she was looking at he quickly grabbed the remote and turned it off. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" Apparently he had stopped on some movie about domestic violence, and when he had turned it off the man had been in the middle of beating up his wife.

"It's okay, Luka." His heart was beating way faster than it was supposed to and he felt like killing himself for exposing her to that, but she just seemed like it didn't get to her at all. "It's not like I've never been watching TV before." Luka just opened his mouth about to protest, but when he couldn't come up with anything to say, Abby interrupted him. "I wasn't born yesterday, Luka, I know it's going on and I have seen it in movies and TV shows many times." He had no idea how to respond, so he just stared at her speechless.

"Anyways," Getting up she walked towards the door. "Think I'll go help your mom with dinner or something." Luka wanted to stop her, but he didn't know how, so she had already left the room way before he got up himself to go take a shower. Soccer practice did after all make him pretty sweaty and smelly.

* * *

Luka walked into his parents' bedroom where his mom was busy folding the laundry.

"Hey." Picking up a new t-shirt she smiled at her son.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" He shrugged his shoulders as he sat down on the bed next to the pile of shirts.

"I couldn't sleep." She gave him a knowing look before putting a pile of pants into the closet.

"Something's bothering you." It wasn't a question but a statement, and they both knew it.

"You think?" She gave him an understanding look and he sighed frustrated. "I just wish I knew what was going on in her head." Sitting down next to her son, she started rubbing his back.

"I know honey, so do I." He took a deep breath as he looked at his hands, which were now laying in his lap.

"Yesterday she seemed like she was doing so well, talking with me and laughing. Then today she seemed so distant again." She sighed, but she never got a chance to reply as Luka continued. "And I know she's... coping, or something..."

"You have to remember, Luka..." Taking a deep breath she rubbed his upper arm, trying to think of something good to say. "She's not trying to recover from what she's been through, neither her mind nor her body is ready for that yet." Luka just starred confused at her. "She's still just trying to get used to the fact that it's no longer a secret, trying to understand that suddenly people know, that she no longer has to hide and lie about everything." He looked down, feeling defeated. He had to admit that it actually did make a bit sense, even though he didn't like it.

"But still..."

"We went to see the police today." That shut Luka up. He hadn't expected that, and his mom sure didn't sound like she wanted, or liked sharing that information. Or maybe it was just the idea of it she didn't like. "Not only haven't they found him yet, and have absolutely no idea where to look, but Abby also had to talk to them for quite a while, about... everything."

"Oh." Suddenly her behaviour was completely reasonable. Not that he would have ever acted that way, he would probably have locked himself up in his room and curled into a ball on his bed, but this was Abby. He hadn't ever met anyone so stubborn and strong, so... independent. But at the same time he knew that it was just a façade, that she was shutting out all her emotions in an attempt to keep everyone out and protect herself. Ignoring her feelings so she wouldn't have to deal with them.

"She wasn't too happy about that... Which is pretty understandable." Luka just nodded in agreement before looking wondering at his mom.

"Mom, is it very horrible that... Ehm..." He hesitated, not sure if he could get himself to mention it.

"What?" She pushed for him to talk, knowing that it was probably something bugging him quite a lot, and as she'd expected he took a deep breath before continuing.

"That I'm somehow happy that he beat the baby out of her." When she just starred intensively at him he shook his head, realizing his words had come out completely wrong. "Not that I'm happy he beat her up, because trust me, I'm _definitely_ not! I'm just happy that she's no longer pregnant!"

"I know what you mean." Luka let out a sigh of relief, happy that he could stop his rambling. "And as much as I hate to admit it, I'm happy about that as well." That somewhat surprised Luka. Like the rest of his family, like most Catholics, at least the very religious ones, she was against abortion most of the time, and so was he.

"I just can't imagine her pregnant. And least of all with... his baby." He felt her hand on his back once again and knew that she felt the same way. Abby had been through enough and she definitely didn't need a pregnancy on top of it all. Especially not when it was caused by... rape.

"She'll be okay, Luka. She just needs time." Taking a deep breath he nodded, knowing she was right. He just wished 'time' meant a day, maybe two, and not as much as the rest of her life. She would never get over it completely, he knew that, she'd always have not only tons of physical scars, but deep emotional ones as well.

"You still haven't told me about what happened at her place." He pushed her hand away from his back and looked at her in disbelieve.

"Not now, mom. I _don't_ want to talk about it." Sighing, she looked down at her hands, pretty much expecting this kind of reaction from him.

"Luka, you're going to have to tell me eventually. Why not just..."

"I found her in a pool of blood, okay?" Frustrated he got up from the bed and walked towards the door. "Seeing her... naked... on the kitchen floor... looking so... fragile... wasn't exactly what I had expected to find when I went there." She tightened her lips, hating having to see him like this. "I got her to tell me a bit about what was going on. Forced it out of her. Threatened it out of her. I watched her suffer from the pain as I helped her clean out the wounds." It was obvious that everything from that weekend was still bothering him, haunting him, and she wished she could make him feel better, make him talk to her about it.

"Luka..."

"I failed her, mom!" He was practically yelling, and she could hear the pain in his shaking voice. "I failed her..."

"You didn't fail her, Luka, you..."

"I left her. She hadn't even recovered completely from the blood loss, but I still left her to go to some stupid wedding shower, knowing that that... sick bastard... that monster... could come back any second." He was afraid that he would start crying. He could feel the tears slowly building in his eyes.

"It's not you fault."

"She promised me she'd be safe. She kept telling me he wouldn't come back anytime soon. I let her convince me to leave her, to go home. If I had stayed this wouldn't have happened. It's my fault, mom." She took a deep breath as she got up.

"Luka..." He stopped her by holding out both of his hands in front of him.

"Don't even bother, mom." He grabbed the door handle without turning around. "I'm going to bed. I still have school tomorrow." Before she could even think of something to say, he had left the room, and she let out a deep breath as she fell back onto the bed. She knew that it would be as good as impossible to get Luka to change his mind, and it would be too hard for both of them to try right now. It would have to wait for a while.


	43. That Thing She Shouldn't Talk About

I'm so so so so so so so so sorry that it has taken me so long to update but damn I've had a major writer's block (and still do)... I'm only able to write like 100 (200 maybe.. if I'm lucky) words a time and then have to wait like 2 weeks...  
Anyways, and then when I've felt like I could write I haven't had time... I got a completely new room and DAMN I had a lot of stuff before.. took me a month to get it cleaned up (it's still messy) and had birthday parties all weekend (OMG I got a gift card to take my drivers license.. cost like $1500 - 2000 here in Denmark)  
And also been REALLY!!! busy with cheering.. (yes, started again and DAMN it's awesome)

But well... here's the (very short) update... bear in mind that I wrote it with a completely blank ... well, guess it can't even be called a brain.. so be nice :P And please review!! (that is if anyone are even reading this story still... most likely completely forgotten by now...)

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**Chapter 43 - That Thing She Shouldn't Talk About**

Abby looked up from her book as someone knocked on her door the next morning, just to see Luka's mom enter her room.

"I was hoping you were awake." Closing her book, she sat up so there was room on the bed for the doctor to sit down next to her.

"Come in here to give me another 'talk'?" It didn't come out nearly as harsh as the words implied, and she hadn't meant for it. She knew she wouldn't be able to avoid it, but gosh she hated them. She just wanted to be left alone, even though she couldn't deny that it felt good having people care about her.

"Actually," She sat down on the bed, giving Abby a small smile. "I was just gonna let you know that I'm leaving for work." Biting her lip, she looked down embarrassed, but soon felt Dr. Kovac rubbing her upper arm. "And also, Niko's not feeling well, so he'll stay home today. I know you probably would have enjoyed being here by yourself, but he's most likely going to sleep all day anyways." Not knowing how to respond, she just looked up and shrugged her shoulders.

"Just help yourself to anything you need, and I put all the numbers you might need on the fridge." She just nodded, waiting for Dr. Kovac to go on. "Don't hesitate to call either of us if you need anything, okay?" Once again she just nodded as Dr. Kovac tousled her hair before getting up.

"And Abby?" She looked towards the door which was now open. "When he does wake up, remind him he needs to do the dishes." Nodding slightly, she returned a small smile as the door closed, before returning to her book.

* * *

"Good morning." She looked away from the boring soap opera on TV, which she didn't even know the name of, and gave a very tired looking Niko a small smile.

"It's more like 'good afternoon'. It's almost 3." Niko just shrugged his shoulders as he sat down on a chair across from her. "Your mom told me to remind you about the dishes." He let a small laugh escape his throat, but it quickly stopped as he noticed Abby's facial expression hadn't changed and she was just staring at him like she wasn't sure whether or not to trust him.

"Look, Abby." She did look at him, but as he took a deep breath she looked towards the floor instead. "I know that I haven't always been very nice to you, that I've pretty much been a complete idiot, and I'm really sorry about that." Biting her lip, she looked back up at him.

"It's fine, Niko." He just shook his head slightly at her unsure voice.

"I have to admit that I might still not like you too much, care about you like the rest of my family obviously does, but if I had known anything about your life I definitely would have treated you a lot better." She just gently shook her head, not looking up.

"Niko, it's okay. You don't have to..." Once again he stopped her, by interrupting her.

"I wanted to. I needed to apologize to you. It would be pretty awkward with you staying here for the next... I don't know... while, if things were too weird between us." Looking up, she gave him a weak smile, silently appreciating what he was doing. It definitely did make things a bit less awkward, but at the same time it also got her to think about exactly how much he knew. Everyone else in the house knew practically everything, since the two adults were, or had been, her doctors and seen way more of her body and injuries than she felt comfortable with, and Luka was the one who had 'discovered' it. Of course they'd have to have told Niko the basics, as to explain why she was there, but she truly hoped that it was just 'the basics'.

"Thank you." The words had barely left her mouth before Niko had gotten up from the chair and was moving towards the door.

* * *

It only took a couple of minutes before the older boy re-emerged from the kitchen, placing a bowl of ice cream in front of Abby.

"Thought you'd might like some ice cream. I still haven't met anyone who could say 'no' to that." Not exactly sure how to respond, she just looked at the boy in front of her with a confused facial expression. "I wasn't sure what you liked, so I gave you Rocky Road and some Ben and Jerry's." Looking back at the bowl in front of her, she felt Niko sitting back down and starting on his own ice cream.

"Thanks." She picked up the spoon, and for a few seconds she just played with the cold substance before taking a bite of the chocolaty ice, feeling it melt on her tongue.

"So Abby, can I ask you a question?" Swallowing the ice cream already in her mouth, she shrugged her shoulders, not feeling up to answering questions or even talking, but not feeling like she could decline either.

"Those pictures..." The second the words left his mouth, she felt her entire body freeze up and it felt like her heart stopped beating. "What exactly are they?" Biting her lip she put down the bowl, avoiding his gaze, suddenly losing all her appetite. She had forgotten all about them since that day Luka had confronted her about it, and then of course Niko had to bring them up when she needed it the least.

"Please, Niko..." She felt his eyes on her like needles burning into her skin, and after a few seconds it became too much, forcing her to look up at him with pleading eyes. He didn't look like it bothered him though, he just continued staring expectantly at her.

"I won't tell anyone. You have my word." She almost felt like laughing. Like that even mattered.

"I can't tell you. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't." Just the thought of them made her shiver, and Niko's sigh of frustration didn't exactly help.

"Seriously, Abby. That sounds so cliché." She could feel the water slowly build in her eyes but forced herself not to let the tears fall. What was wrong with her? She didn't cry, she never cried, no matter how much something hurt. But lately it seemed like it was all she ever did. It made her feel so weak and pathetic. She hated it.

"They made me promise, Niko. But they're your friends. If you so desperately want to know, ask _them_!" She didn't know where it came from, but it seemed that whenever she got scared, she either got way more guts or closed off completely and broke down, sometimes even both, like right now. She felt like she was right on the edge of letting all her tears flow down her cheeks.

"Who are _they_?" Biting her lip she looked away, feeling about ready to crack under his inquiring stare.

"Whoever gave game to you." She kept her gaze fixed on one of her knuckles, which was now slightly bleeding thanks to the small wound she had nervously scratched off.

The feeling of a tight grip on her wrist made her head snap up. "Come on, Abs!" I felt like someone had just slapped her. No one but Richard ever called her that. She practically slipped into some kind of trance-like condition, the one Richard always had her in, the one in which he had complete control over her. "It can't be that bad."

"I...I..." She could feel the tears build up in her eyes as his grip on her wrist tightened, although she wasn't even sure whether or not he was aware that he was doing it. "It's a bribe."

She didn't know who was most shocked. Niko, because she'd actually said it, or her, because, well, he had actually made her say it. Niko quickly recovered though, and just stared questionable at her.

"How?" She looked down embarrassed as he placed the other hand on her upper arm. Sure, it wasn't the way Richard usually held her, but it sure was nothing like the soft, caring touch she had gotten used to from Luka or his mom either.

"What the hell are you doing?" Abby had been so out of it that she hadn't noticed anyone enter the house until a fist collided with Niko's nose, causing him to let go of her so he could stop the slight nosebleed.

She stayed completely still as he started mumbling in Croatian, most likely cursing. "Geez, Luka, was that really necessary?" Abby took a step back, the look in Luka's eyes scaring her a bit.

"You still haven't answered my question. _What_ were you doing?" Niko just rolled his eyes while still holding his hand under his bleeding nose.

"Relax, Luka..."

"Don't you dare tell me to relax!"

"I was just asking her about those pictures. It's not my fault she gets all obsessed. And I know they are bothering you as well, so don't get so worked up." Luka felt the anger build up in him with each word, but to control his emotions and not just beat the crap out of his own brother, he carefully grabbed Abby's hand and gave Niko a dead stare. How dare he bring up something so... He couldn't even find a correct word for it. But hadn't they all been through enough? They didn't need anything else to worry about.

"Don't you _ever_ touch her again!" He spun around and headed towards the stairs, Abby obediently following him as she didn't know what else to do.


	44. Kiss It All Better

I'm back!!

Thank you guys SO MUCH for the reviews :P I guess my writers block is getting a bit better, however still there...  
MauraFan228: They never split up, so they cant really get back together :P But I see how it might have looked like it...  
Jenanis: Here, have some Luby time :P

Hope you guys had a nice christmas and New Years... The fireworks here in Copenhagen rocked as always :P

ENJOY!!!

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**Chapter 44 - Kiss It All Better**

They had barely reached the top of the stairs before Luka pulled Abby into his bedroom and locked the door, quickly turning around to face her and placing his hands on her upper arms.

"Are you alright?" His tone was so different from what it had been less than a minute before. Much softer and much more caring. She just stared at him for a few seconds before slightly nodding.

"I'm fine." She felt like pushing him away, wanting to put up her thick wall, but couldn't find the willpower for it. So instead she just let him guide her to his bed where she sat down and started staring at her bitten down finger nails. "I'm sorry..."

"What?" His sharp voice forced her head to snap up so she was starring into his completely confused and surprised eyes. He almost seemed angry. "Why are you... What for?" She looked back down during his ramble, trying to recompose herself.

"I damaged things between you and Ni..." She was cut off mid-sentence by Luka's lips briefly brushing against her own.

"Abby," Shocked by his actions, although not in a bad way, she let him carefully lift her chin. Their eyes met, and for a short while they stayed like that until Luka placed a soft kiss on her forehead. Abby closed her eyes as his lips lingered on her skin, enjoying the feeling she hadn't even realized until now how much she was missing. She almost felt disappointed as he carefully retreated again. "You have nothing to apologize for."

She let her glance shift back towards the floor as he released his hand from her face. It was one of those awkward silences and she really felt the need to break it, but she never got a chance to say anything, not that she had any idea what to say, before she felt Luka's arms wrap around her. She winced slightly as his embrace came in contact with the still fresh'ish wounds on her back, but decided to just swallow her pride and leaned into him as she realized he had sat down next to her on the bed.

"So I was thinking," Abby looked up at him briefly as good as she could without having to move out of their currently very comfortable position. "Since it's weekend, want to disappear with me?" Confused, Abby was about to get up, but Luka tightened his grip on her, not letting her move. "I don't mean literally disappear, I just thought you might want to get out of here for a bit."

"I would." She grabbed the hem of Luka's shirt, absentmindedly running it through the fingers. "I'm going stir-crazy." A tiny smile forced its way to Luka's lips. He knew how much she hated being stuck somewhere, and that she'd probably do anything to be able to return to school. "But I have to go to the hospital tomorrow."

He let out a low, almost disappointed-sounding sigh. "It's only a quick check-up," She was trying to save the atmosphere in the room, not wanting to ruin the almost good mood they'd created. "We still have plenty of time when I get home. Or Sunday." She added the last part, knowing it probably wouldn't be as quick as she made it sound like. Going to the hospital meant tons of check-ups and 'psych-ward-appointments ' as they felt like to her, having to talk to the police and her shrink. Sure, it was Luka's mom, but she tried to only go completely psychiatrist on her during their 'sessions'.

"Is something wrong?" Luka was unusually quiet, and after a while the awkward silence had gotten to her. He just stiffened, but as Abby attempted to sit up he started gently stroking her side where a small piece of her skin had been exposed due to her shirt having rolled up a bit, surprised when she didn't automatically recoil.

"No." This time it was Abby who sighed, while rolling her eyes. It was obvious that he was holding something back

"Luka..." Taking a deep breath, he stopped the movement of his hand, not looking down although he could feel Abby staring at him.

"Okay, so there is this one thing which has been really bothering me." He felt Abby tense up momentarily, then relax a bit again as Luke let out the air he wasn't aware he'd been holding.

"Abby please," This time he looked down at her, once again amazed by the fact that she didn't automatically pull away or brake their eye contact. "Tell me the truth. Just this one time." He could see her taking a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm and not just back out.

"Why?" She looked confused, and he knew that if he wanted to ask her, it had to be now. "Why did you keep telling me you would be safe? Why did say he wouldn't come back?" She broke the connection, looking down in her lap.

"He wouldn't have." Her voice was low and weak and it was easy to hear that she didn't like thinking about it. Luka was about to cut her off after a short silence, about to ask her more questions connected to her answer, but was interrupted by her body slightly shaking as her hands started fiddling with one of her bandages. "But they called him, told him I hadn't shown up for work." She had barely even finished the sentence before Luka pushed her away, although still holding on to both of her arms so he could look at her.

For a while he just stared at her, unable to accept what she'd just said. _He_ had been the one keeping her home, telling her not to go. _He_ had forced her not to leave the house even though she had practically begged him. _He_ had literally gotten her beaten up, almost killed. She had most likely known what was going to happen because of his actions. As if reading his thoughts, she started frantically shaking her head.

"Luka..."

"Oh God! You must hate me! I... I did this to you... I..." He was rambling, not really sure what about, and continued doing so until Abby pulled him out of his train of thoughts.

"No, Luka! Don't blame yourself! It wasn't your fault!"

"But it is." She was about to once again disagree with him, but before she could he continued. "We both know I would have never let you go, no matter what you said or how much you tried." She stayed quiet, biting her lip, knowing that he was right. But she wouldn't let him blame himself, she didn't blame him. She just didn't know what to say.

Closing her eyes she pulled out of his grip, which he willingly let her do, most likely thinking that he couldn't blame her for hating, maybe even despising him. But in stead of turning around or leaving him as he had expected her to do, she moved closer and leaned back into him. She still felt pretty uncomfortable by all the physical contact, but at the moment she was able to ignore it, knowing this was the only way to get Luka to realize that she didn't hate or blame him for anything, to show him that she trusted him.

"Abby..." He was taken aback by her actions but was near about to protest. Realizing he'd have to give up the fight, he sighed and once again rested his arm around a quiet Abby.

"So has he ehm... hurt you... many times because of me?" He felt her take a deep breath, trying to stall. "And please, don't lie."

"Luka..." He just nodded as she trailed off, even though he knew she couldn't see it. Sure, she hadn't said it straight out, but she hadn't denied it either. "I don't want to talk about it anymore." He couldn't really blame her for that and besides, he didn't really want to either. Carefully rubbing her arm he looked around the room, but as he noticed the clock on the wall he practically jumped out of the bed.

"Oh shit!"

"What?" Abby looked confused, almost scared at him. He just grabbed her hand and pulled her after him out of the room.

"I hadn't realized how long time we'd just been sitting there." She still just looked at him confused as he led her don the stairs, not knowing how to respond. "I promised my parents would start dinner since they got caught up at work." Abby couldn't help but let a small smile form on her lips as she watched Luka looking frantically through the fridge after having let go of her hand once they'd reached the kitchen.

"Damn! Half of the things I need are missing. I was supposed to go grocery shopping after I had dropped off my school stuff at home. How am I supposed..."

"Luka!" He stopped rambling as she placed her hand on his arm. "We'll just make something else."

"But..."

"You've got plenty of vegetables. Just chop them up and put them all on the pan. We can even add some of the mango and pineapple." He just stared at her, so she sighed impatiently.

"Wouldn't it be easer to just make some pasta then?" She rolled her eyes. Typical boys. They would probably live their entire lives without eating any fruit or vegetables if it was up to themselves.

"Fine. Let's make a deal. You'll make pasta and I'll do the vegetables. Then we can just add the pasta on the pan for a little while in the end." Luka seemed to be thinking for a little while, but then held out his hand.

"Deal." She once again rolled her eyes as she shook it. Boys! Shaking her head she once again opened the fridge to retrieve everything she needed, her and Luka's previous conversation forgotten for the moment as they instead just concentrated on getting the dinner ready.

* * *

"Ouch!" Abby jumped down from the kitchen counter as Luka quickly pulled his hand away from the stove.

"Let me see." He held his hand out and Abby carefully assessed the born on the side of his hand where he'd accidentally hit the burning plate. "It doesn't look too bad." He winced as she barely even grazed it with her finger. "Hold on a second." She left him standing in the middle of the kitchen as she grabbed a cloth and soaked it with cold water.

"I thought I was supposed to put it under the tab." Once again we winced slightly as she placed the cloth on his hand with a gentle grip. "Abby?" She was just looking down at their hands, being very quiet.

"I.." He could feel that she was uncomfortable, so he squeezed her hand as reassurance. And it must have worked, because she looked up, although she couldn't get herself to look in his eyes. "In my experience this works better. It makes it stop hurting faster." Luka just stayed quiet, not sure what to say. He couldn't really think of an appropriate respond, so he figured that none at all was better. "Anyways," She lifted the cloth to get a quick look at it. "It's small. It shouldn't even leave a scar." He just took a hold of the cloth himself as she went back to the stove to stir the pasta.

"Or maybe you could kiss it better for me?" Dropping the spoon into the pot she burst out laughing, a sound Luka had really missed. "What?" He sounded genuinely innocent, like he had absolutely no idea what was so funny.

"Luka, my brother grew out of that _years_ ago!" Noticing the big smile on his lips she knew he had just been kidding. But of course he had, and she should have known that. She did know that, but where was the fun killing the jokes? "Sure, I'll kiss it." Before he had a chance of responding she'd removed the cloth and gently kissed the sore area, her lips leaving his skin much to quickly after his opinion. "All better?"

"Much." She gave him a smile before returning to food, pouring the pasta into the pan with the vegetables just as they heard Luka's parents enter the front door.


	45. Some Things Will Never Change

I'm so so so so so so so sorry it has taken me so long... But I got the flu, and then I'm pretty sure I had a small pneumonia (or well, everyone keeps telling me that I might since I have coughing fits non stop)...  
School has been crazy with way too much homework, and this geek club thing I'm in has started again and I'm doing all this volunteering stuff with American exchange students studying here in Copenhagen...  
And well, the Danish Cheerleading Championships are coming up in a month, and we're NOT ready, so we're practicing A LOT lately!!  
Plus my computer has kind of crashed... but luckily I got a new one for my birthday, so I just got all my ffs etc moved to this the other day.. YAY

Anyways, done with my rambling.. ENJOY!! (And I'm so so very happy for my replies :P I'm really glad you like it, so thanks for replying!!)

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**Chapter 45 - Some Things Will Never Change**

Abby almost fell backwards as Eric as good as jumped on her. She had been stuck in the hospital all day, so meeting up with her brother afterwards made the day just a bit better.

"Easy, Eric, let her breathe." She hadn't even realised she had let out an audible wince until Eric's new foster dad had pulled her out of the shock of the hug, so she quickly gave him small, maybe even a bit grateful smile, before turning to her brother and tousled his hair.

"I missed you, Abby." She didn't get a chance to reply before he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards a table in the other end of the restaurant while Dr. Kovac was greeting Eric's foster family.

"I missed you too." She meant it, she supposed, but it sounded kind of forced. Not that it surprised her very much, because to be honest, she'd had too much on her mind to constantly think of her baby brother for the past little week's time.

She sat down across from Eric, just as the adults joined them at the table, Dr. Kovac sitting down next to her. Abby felt her gently grab her hand and squeeze it. Either she was really bad at hiding how nervous she actually was, or Dr. Kovac just knew her too well by now. Sure, she'd met Eric's new family before, the family she was supposed to move to later on, but this was the first time she'd really get to talk to them. Besides, she still felt really awkward around Eric, now that he knew so much.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Abby." Realizing she had been staring at the table she looked up and gave them a small smile.

"You too."

"Eric hasn't shut up about wanting to see you for days, so we're really glad that you had time for some lunch." She just gently shook her head, and a tiny smile formed on her lips as she noticed Eric looking as innocent as ever with his big grin and puppy eyes.

"No I... I wanted to see him too." The entire table fell silent as the waiter put down their drinks. Abby hadn't even noticed that anyone had ordered them.

"So Alice, how's work going?" Abby wasn't sure whether Dr. Kovac had started a conversation to break the awkward silence or if she was really interested, and to be honest she couldn't care less. She was just happy that she was no longer the centre of attention.

"How did your soccer match go?" She wasn't sure how to describe the look in his eyes. He seemed so happy, but at the same time a bit sad, but what she noticed the most was how they were practically yelling out how amazed he was that she remembered it.

"We won, and I scored both the first _and_ the winning goals." He gave her a huge smile, but she saw right through it, knowing him better than anyone else.

"Then why do you seem so sad about it?" He looked down, but then decided to look back up at her, although avoiding her eyes.

"I just wish you'd been there." She gave him a small apologizing smile, refusing to let him she the pang of guilt she felt.

"I promise I'll come next time, I just..."  
"It's fine, Abby. I know you would have been there if you could." She gave him a smile, this time a sincere one. How could you not love that boy? So sweet and understanding. Sometimes she really did believe he was switched at birth, he so didn't fit into their crazy family.

"So, what do you guys want?" Abby had barely even had time to realize that they were talking to them before Eric had forgotten all about their conversation.

"A triple meat pizza." She quickly kicked his shin under the table, and as he looked shocked at her, all he received was a dead glare. She had raised him to be polite, not to just use people. "I mean, I would really like a triple meat pizza, if that's okay." She resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the grown ups just smiled at him. Well, at least it was a bit better.

"Of course you may have one. What about you, Abby? What would you like?" Looking down at the table she started fiddling with the bottom of her sweater, which she had yet to take off. But that was most likely not going to happen as she was only wearing a short sleeved t-shirt underneath, and her arms still looked as bad as they'd done almost a week ago.

"I'm not really hungry." It was very quiet and barely audible, but she knew they'd heard her, cause she could feel all of their eyes on her. They, or at least Dr. Kovac knew that it wasn't true, but she just really didn't like people being so generous to her, so nice. Yes, she was hungry, but she couldn't accept them buying her food. It seemed so weird. Unreal. And Abby was scared that if she started accepting their kindness, that if she started believing that it was real, that things were actually different now, then it would all fall apart, break beneath her. She didn't deserve people caring about her, taking care of her. It just seemed so wrong.

"I find that hard to believe. You haven't eaten anything since breakfast, and even then you only ate a yoghurt." She just shrugged her shoulders, still not wanting to meet their eyes. "At least have some bread sticks." Closing her eyes she let go of the sweater she hadn't realized she was still holding on to. She supposed it couldn't hurt, so she gently nodded her head.

"Sure. Thank you." She saw the relieved smile on the doctor's face as she looked back up. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all. Maybe she could actually trust that someone did care about her, and not just pretended to out of obligation.

* * *

They were both silent for most of the ride back to the house, but as they waited for the light to turn green at an intersection downtown, Abby pulled herself away from the mirror and looked at the woman sitting in the driver's seat.

"Dr. Kovac?" She sounded insecure, and she was. She wasn't sure if she should ask, or even how to ask the question that had been bugging her for the past hour.

"Mhm?" She started runner her finger along the edge of her seat, trying to come up with a good way to formulate the words.

"How come you care so much about what I eat?" When she didn't answer right away, Abby realized it hadn't come out like she'd wanted it to. "I mean, why are you always trying to make me eat so much?" Not that t was that much, but it was more than she was used to, and she'd never had anyone to tell her to eat up before." The doctor gave her a small smile as she started driving again.

"You want me to be completely honest?" A bit confused, Abby just nodded before returning her gaze towards the street in front of her. "Well, I care about you, and I've seen how little you eat." When she stopped Abby thought she was done. She wasn't really that satisfied with the answer, but she would never say that. "It's not healthy, Abby." At this her head snapped up, still a bit confused. "You're skinny, very skinny. Too underweight for your own good." Looking down at her lap she slowly nodded. She sure hadn't expected that.

"So you're trying to fatten me up?" A small laugh escaped the grown-up's throat, but it was a friendly laugh.

"I wouldn't have put it that way, but I suppose you can say that. All I'm doing is trying to give your body some nutrition. It'll help you heal a lot faster as well." She couldn't really argue with that, so knowing the doctor was right she turned back to the window.

* * *

She wasn't sure exactly how long time she'd standing there with the water next to her running. She had told the others that she needed a shower before going to bed, but in stead she had found herself staring at her reflection in the full-length mirror. At the big fading bruise which still outlined the upper left part of her face. The cracked lip which was barely visible by now. The old scar on her earlobe which you wouldn't spot unless you knew it was there.

Forcing her hands to stop shaking, she carefully lifted her shirt to reveal her still very painfully looking purple stomach. Without removing her gaze from the mirror she slowly traced her finger along the white bandage covering up the stitches from where they worked on her spleen, as if they'd rupture or break if she wasn't careful enough.

At least they would be taken out in a couple of days. Not just the ones on her stomach, but all of them. She would be able to take a shower again, a real shower. Right now, a shower meant attempting to wash herself without getting the stitches wet. And that was a bit hard, considering how many she had.

Moving her hand a bit further up she let it trace the outline of her ribs. Dr. Kovac was right. She had always been skinny, or at least for as long as she could remember. She supposed she had been much to stressed and busy lately to realize that she was losing weight. A lot of weight. How that was possible while being pregnant she had absolutely no idea, but then again, it might have had something to do with that.

Letting her shirt fall back down she rested her hand on her left hipbone, right on top of where the mark used to have been. Even through the layers of clothes she could still feel the small letters practically burning her fingers, just as if they new and fresh. They might be completely gone and even the scar was so invisible that it couldn't be seen, but for Abby they had left an everlasting pain. Those two tiny letters, '_RL_', his initials, 'Richard Lockhart', the ones he'd carved with a needle where you usually get tattoos, back when she was what? 10? They still reminded her every day, every time she thought she might be able to forget, that she belonged to him. That she always would. That she was his.

Shaking her head she turned away from the mirror, trying to think of something else, anything but him. She was supposed to be safe now, wasn't she? They kept telling her that she'd never see him again, that it was over. That no one would hurt her. She was out, he had absolutely no control over her anymore. Except he did, mentally. It was to just too hard to forget and pretend after so many years.

Closing her eyes she sat down on the closed toilet seat, reaching over the sink to turn off the water without even having to look. She probably should get back downstairs or at least reemerge from the bathroom before anyone got suspicious as to why she spent so much time in there.

Twisting her hair into a bun she got up and once again turned the tap so the cold water started running into the sink. She created a bowl her hands and splashed it in her face, to make it look wet. It would after all be kind of weird if she managed to stay completely dry while washing herself.

Purposely avoiding the mirror she turned around and left the bathroom, deciding to just go to bed in stead of joining the others by the TV.

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**BTW!! I'm kind of stuck and well, The way I had invisioned this way before I started posting, I was gonna go evil again pretty soon, but I dont know if that would be too much..  
So I need you to help me.. _Please tell me in a review if you want 'EVILNESS'!_ Even if you don't review, you can just go 'yes' or 'no'...  
THANKS!!! Love you guys :P**


	46. Stay

I'm SO SO SO SO sorry it has taken me so long to update!

I could give this LOONG excuse, but truth is I just havent been able to write at all for some weird reason, but I'm (hopefully) making that up to you just a bit by making this one extra long :)

Anyways, as for my useless excuse:  
First I was REALLY busy training for the danish cheer championships (and we did AWESOME by the way.. it's on youtube.. just find my user BritneyLuby if you want to see it :P ..  
However, I didnt really train very much for it as I (exactly 3 weeks prior to it) once again hurt my knee (too much practice?)... I thought it was just sprained, cause thats what my doctor said... so I walked around Vienna (which was 2 days after I got hurt) for a week on crutches with my one leg twice as big as the other!  
However, I went back to the doctor when I got home, and he decided I'd torn my miniscus... so I still joined the championships (looking like a retard.. but couldnt abandon my stunt group) and got knee surgery 2 days later.. still walking around with a DonJoy on my leg.. woot woot! So that kinda killed my mood!

Anyways, BACK TO THE STORY!!

And thank you guys SOOOOOOO much for the reviews!!! I LOVE them and they DO inspire me VERY MUCH to write :P

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**Chapter 46 - Stay...**

"Luka, hurry up, we're late!" Rolling his eyes, Luka quickly put his bowl in the sink and threw his backpack over his left shoulder. "Mr. Martinson is gonna kill me!"

"I'm coming, Niko!" He smiled at Abby, who still sat at the table curled up in one of his over sized sweaters, happy that his brother was in the hallway. "Now, try not to get in too much trouble while we're gone." She just rolled her eyes at him, gently leaning into him as he placed a small kiss on her forehead.

"Like that's even possible." As he smiled she couldn't help but blush a little, so she quickly turned to look out the window in stead. "I mean, being stuck here and all."

"Well look at it from the bright side." Confused, she looked at him curiously. "You don't have to take the English literature test today like me." A small chuckle escaped her lips as she waved towards the door.

"Whatever you say, Luka. But you better hurry up if you don't want to walk to school." Knowing she was right he roughly tousled her hair before walking towards the open door.

"I suppose so. I'll see you later."

As soon as she heard the front door slam she leaned back against the chair she was sitting on, pulling the duvet tighter around her. She didn't mind being home alone, she actually quite enjoyed it, but it was starting to get a bit boring, even though it had only been a bit more than a week.

She carefully started poking a tiny cinnamon toast crunch which had been dropped on the floor with her toe, not knowing what else she could do. She'd already read more books than she cared to count and there was nothing on TV at these hours. She wasn't used to being this bored. She always had something to do, always had something to be stressed about. If not school, then work or taking care of Eric or her mom.

She closed her eyes as her foot stopped mid-movement. Work. She'd completely forgotten about that. Had anyone remembered - cared to call her walk and tell them that she wouldn't be coming in for the next?... She wasn't even sure how long they were going to prevent her from returning to a 'normal' life with work and school.

And how about her school? What had they been told? Had they been told anything? Somehow she wished that they had gotten a completely wrong story, that they had been told that she was traveling or something. But she knew that they had probably gotten the real story. At least the basics of it. And it was probably also best that way.

Sighing she got up and threw out the piece of cereal that had previously been on the ground. She placed the duvet on the chair an turned towards the sink. She could just as well do the dishes or something, after all, she only had about an hour to kill before she'd have to leave.

* * *

Abby tapped her foot on the floor as she was looking at the big clock on the wall. She hated the whole 'getting dragged to the hospital' ordeal, and today sure wasn't any different. Actually it was a even more annoying than usual if that was even possible.

Dr. Kovac, or well, Luka's mom (this was starting to get a bit confusing, even to herself) had worked the overnight shift, so she had driven in with Dr. Kovac, or Luka's dad, or Josef, or whatever seemed to fit in stead, meaning she had a couple of hours to kill before her 'appointment'.

At least they had been kind enough to let her stay in the doctors' lounge, not just having dumped her in the waiting area or placed her in a room. But that didn't really help much on keeping her from getting bored. She had already looked through numerous newspapers and medical magazines and even done some of the homework for chemistry she knew no one would know or care about if she did or not. After all, she would most likely not be going back anytime soon, so why bother.

Getting up she threw out the gum wrapper she had previously been fiddling with and left the dark room. Walking towards the admit area she gave the desk clerk a small smile as she leaned up against the desk. She knew, or at least recognized most of the people working in the department from before... from coming here to pick up Luka or just hanging around when waiting for him.

"What are you doing, Mike?" Giving her a wink he signaled for her to come to the other side of the desk. She quickly complied, looking confused at the computer screen as she did so.

"What am I looking at?" He removed the big donut from his mouth and placed it on napkin next to the keyboard.

"New blood for the rumor mill _and_ the bet book." When she raised an eyebrow he pointed at the screen. "I set up hidden web cams in multiple parts of the hospital, mainly the doctors' lounges. A couple of minutes ago the head nurse from radiology made out with the janitor."Abby couldn't help but smirk a little at the huge smile that crossed his face. "I can't wait for Janice to hear about this."

"Hear about what?" Both of them quickly spun around, the big desk clerk attempting to cover the screen.

"Oh nothing, ehm, just that I'm gonna, you know, ditch donuts. They're not good for my cholesterol." Noticing the doctor's eyes pointing towards the desktop besides him he quickly pushed the half eaten chocolate sprinkled donut behind his back, his gaze never leaving the attending in front of him.

"Right... I'm sure she'll be really proud." She handed the chart she was currently holding to the now blushing Mike. "Anyways, I was just going to steal Abby from you if that's okay, so continue doing whatever it is you shouldn't be doing, just don't get into too much trouble."

"Of course, Dr. Kovac." Giving him a small smile, Abby followed Dr. Kovac as she motioned towards an empty room down the hallway. "See you later, Abby."

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"I'm sorry it took so long," she gently closed the door behind her as she followed the doctor into the room furthest down the hallway. "I was stuck with this crazy person who..." She stopped, knowing that she wasn't allowed to discuss other patients and realizing that Abby couldn't really care less.

"It's fine."She quietly sat down on a nice, comfortable chair in the corner of the room, one that was big enough for her tiny frame to curl up and lay in it.

"Anyways, had a nice morning so far? Gotten any breakfast yet?" As Abby diverted her gaze she sighed. "Let me guess, you convinced my husband you were gonna eat something when you got here so you could in stead sleep a bit longer?" At the girl's guilty smile she went over to the desk and pulled out a banana and a sandwich from the drawer, both of which she threw back to Abby. "I expected as much, so I was prepared."

"Thanks." She gave her a sincere smile and took a bite of the banana as the doctor sat down across from her.

"So, anything specific you want to talk about?" Shrugging, Abby looked towards the window in the other end of the room. "Abby..." She looked away from the window, but in stead of looking at Dr. Kovac she looked down at her feet in front of her.

"I hate therapy." She spoke so quiet it was barely audible, but the doctor heard it nevertheless.

"I know, Abby." She gently grabbed a hold of her hand, the one not currently holding the packed sandwich. "And trust me, you're far from the only one. As far as I know, that is the way the majority of the world feels about it."

"But they're not all forced to... go through it." Giving her a warm smile Dr. Kovac squeezed her hand.

"No, they're not, because they are fortunate enough not to need it." When the girl just shrugged, Dr. Kovac leaned back in her own chair. "It'll be over before you know it, Abby. And it might seem completely useless to you, but trust me, it works. It really does. There's is no way I would put you through it if I had just the smallest doubts." When Abby still didn't really give a response, she figured it might be time to get to business. It was always much harder to get her to open up if they switched between personal and professional, concerning and reassuring.

"Look, I know you've been trying to put this off, and to some degree I have as well." A bit confused with the suddenly very serious tone of the doctor's voice, Abby looked up hesitantly. "But there are things I need to know, Abby. Not because I want to or because you're not allowed to keep some secrets to yourself, but because it's things I need to know to be able to help you the best way possible. And to help the police." At the last sentence Abby looked away again, and Dr. Kovac knew it was due to the very tiny confidence she had in the police. She was as positive as could be that they'd never even get close to catching him.

"I know. I just... It's really hard to talk about." Dr. Kovac just smiled at this. Abby had come a long way. A week, even just a couple of days ago, she would have never admitted to something like that.

"It is, but you're doing really good." When she shrugged, Dr. Kovac took a deep breath. "Abby..."

"Let me guess," She cut her off, looking up at the doctor in front of her. "You want to know how it all started." Not saying anything, Dr. Kovac just nodded, although Abby was too busy staring anywhere else to see it.

"I suppose you could blame it all on my mom." She really didn't want to share everything, tell her whole story, but she knew she couldn't stall forever. Besides, opening up would probably be in her own best interest, it might make all those doctors and police people see that she was fine and able return to school and stuff like that. "If she hadn't been sick... Or rather, if she hadn't let the disease completely control her life, then maybe she wouldn't have scared... made my dad run away from everything, flee from this crazy woman and the insane, carefree life she lived." Sure, she was trying to avoid the subject, but no one could really blame her for that.

"When did he leave?"

"I don't remember much, but he wasn't a very good dad. Very far from it, actually." It was like she wasn't really present in the room. She had curled her legs up close to her chest and was just staring straight into nothing. "I do remember that I loved him though, back then. But of course I did, the only person I could compare him to was my mom." Dr. Kovac gently reached out to grab a hold of Abby's hand, but as soon as she touched her the young girl recoiled, never getting pulled out of her trance.

"I woke up this one morning, the day before my 7th birthday, and he was gone. The car wasn't there, Maggie was acting as though everything was normal, and I just knew he wouldn't be coming back." A glimpse of sadness appeared in her eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it had come. "I had heard them fight the evening before. They did it all the time, almost every evening, but this was one of the louder ones. So I had locked the door to our room and tried to calm Eric down as usual. I could hear my name being mentioned a lot, but I just tried to block everything out, focusing on Eric in stead. But I suppose it must have been something bad, cause after I heard the door slam Maggie started banging on the door to our room, screaming for me to make Eric shut up and about how I had ruined everything. How it was my fault that he had stormed out again, which wasn't very unusual for him to do." Although she spoke in complete monotone, it was obvious to Dr. Kovac how painful it was for Abby to think back on, to have lived through, and all she wanted to do was to throw her arms around the girl and take all that pain away from her.

"Did you ever see him again?"Abby let out a small snort, gently shaking her head.

"I barely had time to register the fact that he was gone before my mom started either bringing random guys home with her at night or went to their places and left us for days." A tiny smile appeared on her face, but it never reached her eyes. "This one guy was actually really nice. He made blueberry pancakes for breakfast for me and Eric, but we didn't even get done eating them before Maggie threw him out. Apparently we were _her_ children, and no one was allowed to 'criticize' the way she raised us by treating us like spoiled brats." There was a short silence.

"Were you at least allowed to finish eating the pancakes?" Dr. Kovac wasn't sure how to respond to what Abby told her, but she felt like she had to say something, and judging by the tiny but genuine smile that crossed Abby's face she knew she hadn't made a mistake.

"She told us to throw them all out, as there were a lot of them, but she just ran off as she always did when she was frustrated, so we wrapped them up and hid them in the closet behind all of the clothes Eric had grown out of. Those pancakes lasted almost 3 days." Although she would never admit it, never thought it was possible, it actually wasn't too bad sharing these stories. She actually kind of liked it, as long as it was still innocent stories like these, and not the more serious ones they would soon get to. It was almost a relief to tell someone, to share what her early childhood had been like, knowing that the person she told wouldn't judge her because of it.

The doctor opened her mouth, but just as she was about to say something, Mike, the desk clerk, came into the room without even knocking.

"I'm so sorry for interrupting, Dr. Kovac, but they need you in the ER." Embarrassed, Abby just tightened her grip around her legs as Dr. Kovac looked irritated at the man in the door.

"Well I'm busy. And besides, I was off half an hour ago!"

"I know, and I told them that." He really did look sorry. "But they said it was really, really urgent!" Taking a deep breath she nodded and he left the room.

"I'm really sorry Abby."

"It's okay. I totally understand." She wasn't even sure whether or not she was happy that they'd been interrupted.

"I'll be back really quick, okay?" Abby just nodded. "Then we can see if you feel up to talking anymore." Once again nodding, Abby motioned for the door.

"You should probably go."

* * *

When Dr. Kovac returned to the psychiatric floor, she ignored everyone she passed and walked straight to the room she'd left Abby in, surprised to now find Luka occupying the chair she'd previously sat on. Abby was softly laughing at something, and Dr. Kovac hated the fact that she stopped just because she had entered.

"Luka, what are you doing here?" Her tone wasn't accusing, just curious. He looked at the clock on the wall before turning back to his mom.

"I got out of school an hour ago." She found herself cursing inwardly.

"I was gone for that long?" When Abby just nodded, she sighed as she sat down on a chair next to her son.

"I am so, so sorry. If I'd known I'd be that long I'd have told you to go home."

"It's fine." Sometimes she thought Abby was too forgiving, like now. She had spent more time in the hospital that day than she was supposed to do over multiple weeks.

"No, it's not. And I definitely can't blame you for sick and tired of this place. So what do you say, let's get out of here?" Biting her lip, Abby nervously looked back and forth between the two people in front of her.

"Actually, I... ehm..." She wasn't sure she could get herself to say the words, but she really needed to. "I'd kind of like to finish this... if we could." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She just wanted it done and over with. She knew they were never going to stop asking her questions until she actually told the whole story, so why keep pushing it? Dr. Kovac just looked at her almost in shock.

"Of course. But are you sure?" Taking a deep breath she nodded weakly. "Okay then." The doctor turned towards her son. "Luka..."

"It's okay." She was looking down at her feet, but her voice still sounded more determined than any of her previous statements. "He... He can stay." Letting the words sink in, Dr. Kovac just nodded, noticing the same surprised look on Luka's face as was most likely a mirror of her own.


	47. Painful Talks

New chapter guys!

Once again, Thank you SO MUCH for reading this.. and especially thanks to those who review it :P  
Already have some of the next chapter written, so shouldn't be too long till the next update :)

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Chapter 47 - Painful Talks

It was times like these that Abby was happy she was as small as she was and that these rooms had pretty big chairs. She was now sitting practically on top of Luka still with her legs pulled up tightly to her chest. He had her arms around her, and although she usually wasn't into too much physical contact, especially during these kinds of things, it made her feel more safe, like it would help keep her grounded and maybe even a bit more calm during what she was about to do, to go through, to share with with these people.

"Abby?" She nodded slightly, confirming that she was okay, that she still wanted to do this. "When did you first meet Richard?" Taking a deep breath she never looked away from her feet.

"My mom started dating him a couple of months after my dad left. The same summer we moved to Chicago and half a year later they got married. Maggie had apparently decided that she felt bad for my dad ruining my birthday the year before, so what better present could she give me than a new dad?"

"So they married around your 8th birthday?" Abby gave a short snort, still staring at her feet.

"Like the day after."

"Is that when it started? When he started hurting you?" Dr. Kovac hadn't missed the the slight wince when she'd mentioned Abby's birthday and their wedding, so she figured there must be something about that. Feeling Luka carefully tightening his grip on her hand and rubbing the backside of it with his thumb, she gently shook her head, closing her eyes as she did so.

"No." It was getting harder to relive the memories she'd been trying so hard forget, the more detailed they got. "It started before that." She felt Luka stop his movement for s split second before resuming it.

Dr. Kovac stayed quiet for a short while, not knowing how to respond. Knowing just parts of what Abby had been through was bad enough, but knowing it had been going on for half of her life, maybe even more than that, was just too much.

"How?" When Abby just looked at her confused, she figured she'd have to specify what she meant. "Was he as hard on you back in the beginning?" Looking towards some very uninteresting spot on the opposite wall she once again shook her head, something she seemed to be during a lot recently, although barely visible.

"In the beginning it wasn't much." She closed her eyes, forcing herself to continue. "The first day we came to Chicago Maggie brought Eric with her to get some groceries and to look at the area. It was the first time I was alone with him." She felt Luka pressing her closer to him and had to remind herself that it was Luka. That he wouldn't hurt her.

"I didn't really like him, so when I didn't obey him right away he grabbed my arm." She bit her lip, not wanting to let her emotions show. "I didn't really think anything of that, I mean, Maggie sometimes did that when she got really mad, but I hadn't expected him to... slap me." Sure it wasn't much, not compared to what she'd soon get used to, but it had shocked her back then. "By the end of the week I knew not upset him or talk back to him. He was my new 'daddy' and I was supposed to respect him and do everything he said or asked."

"He hurt you that much during such short time?"

"No." At least not physically. "We just had a lot of talks. Or lectures." She hadn't really been part of the talking, just nodding and replying 'yes, sir' to everything he said. "I usually just kept quiet, I didn't want to get hurt more than necessary, and getting burnt by a cigarette once was enough to teach me my lesson." Dr. Kovac noticed how her son clenched his fist and she couldn't blame him. She wanted to see this guy dead just as much as he did, and Abby's forced monotone only made that want so much stronger.

"Didn't your mom notice anything? Couldn't you tell her or someone else what he was doing?" Abby just snorted, not making eye contact with any of them.

"She just thought I was still mad about having to move from Minnesota, not even noticing my bruises." Her hand automatically went to the inside of her arm where that first burn had been. Of course Maggie had believed Richard when he told her that Abby had taken it from the ashtray and accidentally burnt herself. "And I was too used to never being able to tell anyone about what happened at home, with my mom's disease and all, so I suppose that just worked in his advantage." She felt Dr. Kovac curiously looking at her, so she figured she probably should elaborate.

"Some of the first things he did was to make absolutely sure I wouldn't tell anyone. He made sure I knew whatever happened between us, stayed between us. That it was some kind of relationship that all dad's had with their daughters, and the only reason why I didn't know was because my real daddy was a really bad father." She knew her shield was starting to fail. She had promised herself she could do this unattached, that she wouldn't break, but she was starting to loose faith in that promise. "It had to be a secret though. No one could know about it." Dr. Kovac grabbed the hand that Luka wasn't holding, giving it a firm squeeze.

"Abby, no matter what he's told you, everything he's done to you is wrong. Very wrong." She saw the doubt flickering in the young girl's eyes and knew that it would be a long time before she truly believed that. "And none of it is your fault. You haven't done anything to deserve it." She felt the need to reassure Abby, to let her know that she could go on without being judged. However, Abby just closed her eyes and looked away, obviously still feeling responsible for all that had happened to her.

Taking a deep breath, Dr. Kovac tried to prepare herself for what was coming next. It had to be asked now, while Abby was doing so well, but she was as reluctant to know as the teenager in front of her was to tell.

"When did he start..." She was trying to find a good way of formulating her question, but quickly realized that there was no good or easy way of asking. "using you..." She'd learned very quickly that Abby didn't respond well to the word 'abuse', most likely because it didn't match with it being her own fault, as had always been drilled into her. "sexually?" Her eyes shot up as her entire body visibly stiffened, subconsciously recoiling from their comforting touches. It was impossible not to notice the look of fear and horror in her now glassy eyes, as though she was suddenly remembering it for the first time. But the look quickly disappeared again, betraying all traces of fright as the stony look once again took over and she chose a spot at the opposite wall to focus on.

"They went somewhere else to get married." Although to any other person she might have sounded completely emotionless, the two people in the room could hear the tremor in her voice, which she tried so hard to disguise. "I don't know where or how, I just know they didn't want me or Eric there."

When there was a slight pause, Luka forced himself out of the trance he was currently in. As selfish as it might sound, he too found this hard, and it was absolutely killing him to see Abby like this, to hear her voice so broken. Wanting to do something, anything to make her feel better, he tried to grab her hand again, but he couldn't really blame her when she pulled away. He was after all male, and at this very moment he might not be of her favorite sex.

"The day before they left Maggie took Eric with her to get the last things she needed and stuff like groceries for the neighbor who was gonna take care of us for the 2 weeks they would be gone."

"So you were alone with him." Abby subconsciously winced at the statement, her eyes watering up at the memory, although not enough for tears to actually fall.

"He said it was an early birthday present. And a wedding present from me, a way of connecting us into a family like he was with my mom by marrying her." Her voice along with her body was trembling, and this time she couldn't find the power to resist as Luka tightened his grip around her and grabbed her hand in his.

"It hurt." A tear slid down her cheek and she soon tasted the salty liquid on her lips. She was broken, her barriers were gone, and she was telling them things she had been planning on taking with her to the grave. "But when I started crying he deliberately made me hurt more, even slit my finger with his swiss knife so he could explain the blood on the sheets, by me having played with the scissors or something, so after that I never made a sound." She hadn't realized that more tears had escaped her eyes until she felt Dr. Kovac's hand gently wiping them off her cheek. It wasn't many, but it still made her feel weak.

"It's okay, Abby." Not acknowledging what Dr. Kovac said she let herself fall deeper into Luka's embrace, trying to pretend she was just dreaming this whole thing.

Dr. Kovac felt sick. Even though she'd gotten those kinds of confessions and other revelations from people throughout her career it never got any easier, especially not knowing that she was the one making them relive it and often break down. But this was different, not only did it make her want to vomit, knowing what this sick bastard had put her through in such a young age, before she turned 8, but the fact that she had gotten so personally attached to Abby, that Luka cared so much about her, only made it much worse. And it sickened her to know that she'd suspected it and not done anything about it sooner.

"I think this is enough for today." When Abby just turned her head so it was resting against Luka's chest, staring into nothing with her eyes still very watery, Dr. Kovac reassuringly padded her knee.

"You did good, Abby." It was the first time Luka had spoken and Abby just bit her lower lip in response, wanting to believe him so bad. He sounded slightly out of place, almost scared of breaking the silence, but she couldn't help but notice the calming effect I had on her, especially added since he'd started gently running his fingers through her loose hair.

"Abby?" Not moving from her comfortable position, she looked up at the doctor in front of her. "How about you walk on down to the car, and me and Luka will be down shortly?" Biting her lip she slowly reached out and grabbed the keys from her hand, attempting to stop the slight tremor by squeezing her hand shut around them. "You know where it's parked, right?"Dr. Kovac didn't really want to rip Abby away from her 'safe spot', but they needed to get going and she had to talk a bit with Luka, and besides, she knew Abby would probably appreciate a few moments for herself after what they'd been talking about.

Nodding, Abby reluctantly leaved Luka's embrace, and the second she had left the room to go get her things from the doctors' lounge, Luka gave his mom a quizzical look, not understanding why she'd asked Abby to leave.

"Look, Luka." She could see how hard he was taking the new information they'd just learned and somehow wished he hadn't heard it. "When we leave this room, we forget everything that's been said in here."

"Why?" He sounded as confused as he looked.

"She needs to trust us. She needs to know that she's able to tell me things, as her psychiatrist, without us treating her or acting any differently around her." He seemed to accept that explanation as he quietly nodded, following his mom out of the room to go meet Abby in the garage.


	48. Contradiction

Well guys, I really don't have any good excuses for not having updated in forever AT ALL! So yes, you're more than allowed to kill me! But please, at least make it original! :)  
I should probably say that I'll try to update more often, but with this being the last year of IB and practice starting up again next week (8.5 hours a week - after all, we want to do better at the European championships next year), I dont think I'll have too much time...  
But I PROMISE I'll TRY!

**Jenanis**: I know it seemed unrealistic that Luka was also in the room (I think so as well), but I neede him to know the 'story' as well, and I thought it would be even more unrealistic if Abby told it twice or if Dr. Kovac 'forwarded' the story...

Anyways, thanks a lot for the reviews guys, and I hope to see a lot more of them :) Maybe they'll even inspire me to write - especially now that I know exactly where to go / what to write from like... this next chapter :)

So, ENJOY!!!

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**Chapter 48 - Contradiction**

When Luka was finally done cleaning up after their takeout, he definitely hadn't been expecting to find Abby laying in his bed when he returned to his room, staring out of the window at the clear evening sky.

She had skipped dinner, saying that she wasn't hungry, and none of them had tried talking her into joining them, knowing she needed her space after their trip to the hospital earlier that day.

"Do you think your mom will ever let me go back to school?" Taken aback not only by her question, but also by her wondering tone, he stopped momentarily before joining her on the bed, also laying on his stomach but not waving his legs around in the air like her.

"Of course she will." Not looking away from the almost full moon which was still rising, she just nodded her head, not looking very convinced.

"Yeah right."She still hadn't looked at him, and it started to get to him, so he gently grabbed a strand of her loose her and started playing with it, but she didn't even acknowledge it.

"She knows you care about your school and that you miss it, she just wants you to wait till you're ready."

"Oh, and I'm not ready yet?" She'd turned her head to face him, a look of disbelieve in her eyes, although her voice still sounded a bit distant. But it had been like that ever since they left the hospital. "I've been doing just fine for years, Luka, why should it be any different now?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because it's gotten worse with time." Abby just looked away, knowing he was right but didn't want to admit it. "Or because the entire school saw what happened and everyone are still happily feeding on the rumors." Taking a deep breath, Abby closed her eyes as she carefully fell onto her back, seeing as it was still a bit sore. "I'm sorry, I..."

"Don't, Luka." She started staring at a tiny discolored spot in the ceiling above her. "You shouldn't have to apologize. I was asking for it." Luka couldn't think of a fitting response, so instead he just started twisting a piece of her silky hair around his fingers, loving how she no longer flinched at every tiny physical contact.

"Was dinner any good?" She didn't really care about the answer, she was just trying to change the subject and kill the awkward silence, and Luka knew it, so he just shrugged his shoulders.

"Chinese. There are still leftovers in the fridge if you want some." Abby just shook her head, finally looking up at him. He couldn't help but let a small smile form on his lips at the image in front of him. Her long hair was spread all around her on the pillows, making her look like some kind of fairytale princess, and her bruises, at least the ones on her face, were barely noticeable anymore. And damn he loved it when she smiled, something which seemed pretty rare lately.

"Don't look at me like that!" She wasn't mad, and didn't sound it either. In fact, she actually liked how he looked at her, seeing her only, and not full of pity like everyone else these days. Before she knew it he started poking her sides, which quickly turned into a lot of tickling instead. Squealing, she blocked out the pain and instead focused on the unfamiliar ticklish feeling shooting through her body as he leaned over her to get better access of her other side when she subconsciously ached her back in response to what he was doing.

Holding her down, with a hand tickling each of her sides, he couldn't help but bend down to kiss her, like he had done so many times before, but as her body completely tensed up the second his lips touched hers, he knew he'd crossed the line, and the completely petrified expression on her face when he pulled back was enough to break his heart. It seemed to last forever, but it didn't take more than a few seconds before she looked away ashamed, rolling onto her side so her back was facing him.

"I'm sorry." Luka just stared speechlessly at her. There was absolutely no way she should be the one apologizing for anything, least of all something he was clearly to blame for.

"Abby," He gently placed his hand on her shoulder, causing her to flinch, but she didn't pull away. "I'm the one who should be sorry, not you."

"It's kind of ironic, isn't it?" She didn't sound very affected by what had just happened, instead she just sounded somehow annoyed – at herself. "Here I'm trying to convince you that I'm fine, and then I react like... this." Luka just shook his head even though he knew she couldn't see him, carefully rubbing her arm with the hand he still hadn't removed.

"No it's not. I should have known better. Especially after today." She snorted, reluctantly rolling back onto her back so she could look at Luka.

"Why? Because I'm an emotional wreck?" Shrugging his shoulders he gave her a wry smile.

"Well, emotional perhaps, but not wreck." When she raised her eyebrow he elaborated. "You're not that old. Wrecks are usually old." Rolling her eyes she sat up

"Very funny." She didn't sound amused, but she didn't sound annoyed either. "I think I'm gonna go back to my room, that way you can get your homework done as well." She jumped off the bed, but before she could get too far, Luka grabbed her arm and made her turn around.

"I'm sorry, Abby. I really am." Abby just shrugged, gently shaking her head.

"Don't be. I overreacted. I just... I'm not myself today." He knew Abby pretty well by now, so he could easily hear that she was done talking, that their conversation was over and she she just wanted to be by herself, and he knew better than to try to talk her out of it.

"Okay." He let go of her arm and she moved towards the door. "You're more than welcome to come back if you want, though." Abby just nodded, not turning around.

"I know." She grabbed the door handle but stopped for a second before leaving the room. "Night, Luka." And then all he saw was the door closing.

* * *

As Abby sat up, or more specifically shot up into a sitting position on her bed, she didn't even notice the person sitting next to her, at lest not until he let go of her clammy hand to instead gently grab her shoulders in an attempt to calm her down.

She recoiled before she had a chance to register what was going on, taking a couple of seconds to realize where she was.

"Dr. Kovac..." Her voice seemed so weak and unsure, which just built on to the confused look in her eyes.

"Please Abby, just call me Josef. There's no need for being so formal." Not acknowledging what he said she looked almost frantically around the room, frowning at the red numbers on the alarm, telling her it was in the middle of the night, before her eyes settled back on the man at her side.

"What are you doing here?" The was drenched in sweat, but the presence of the man in the room made her tighten her duvet around her instead of throwing it off like her body screamed for her to do.

"You had a nightmare. I tried to wake you up." At her confused stare he squeezed her hand, not surprised when she tensed up. "I had to use the restroom and decided to check up on you on the way, and you were tossing and turning in the bed like crazy."

"Oh." She looked down, not returning the small smile he gave her. It couldn't really get much more embarrassing than that, could it?

"You wanna talk about it?" There was a short silence as Abby started tracing the pattern on her duvet with her finger. "Your dream I mean." She was wrong. It could get more embarrassing. Or well, maybe awkward was more fitting.

"Not really." It wasn't like she even remembered what it was about and besides, he sounded pretty uncomfortable with their current situation, obviously not that experienced at dealing with... well, people like her.

"It's okay, you know. You can go back." Seeing his doubtful look, she shrugged her shoulders. "I'm fine." She didn't sound very reassuring, and to be honest she was pretty shook up. Not because of the dream though, but because of his presence.

Being alone in a room with a grown up man, in the middle of the night, while laying in her bed, scared her much more than she liked to admit. And she hated it, because she knew he'd never hurt her, that he just wanted to help her, but she just couldn't suppress those unwanted images and memories in her head.

"Are you sure?" The thought of being left alone with all those memories which would most likely just cause another nightmare must have caused some kind of uncertain flicker in her eyes, because instead of waiting for a reply he rose from his chair and slowly moved towards the door.

"How about I make us some tea? Might help us both sleep better." She wanted to ask him why he needed a better sleep, but couldn't find enough courage or willpower to even open her mouth, so instead she just carefully got out of her bed, making sure the duvet was safely secured around her body, and followed the ER doctor leading the way towards the kitchen.

* * *

Dr. Kovac held up two boxes as Abby sat down on one of the chairs. "Which kind? Apple-cinnamon or camomile?"

Shrugging, she looked out of the window. It would have been pitch black outside if not for the few bright stars "I don't care." She couldn't be sure, but she thought she heard him release a small sigh.

"Well then, camomile it is." Abby just nodded as he started finding some mugs and boiled the water. She wasn't really in the mood for tea, or anything, really. To be honest she just to go back to sleep, but she also knew that it wouldn't be possible for her to get any useful rest after the way she'd woken up.

The smell of camomile tea pulled her out of her out of her trance and she carefully accepted the hot liquid from Josef, as he sat down on the opposite side of the table.

"This is kind of awkward, isn't it?" She couldn't help the tiny smile that formed on her lips as she considered how true his words were. It was probably only meant to break the well, awkward silence, so she supposed it had worked like it was meant to.

"Very." She took a sip of the hot tea, careful not to burn herself, all the while trying to ignore the feeling of being stared at. Sure, it wasn't exactly a rare occurrence, and she didn't care about the staring _that_ much, it was the pity she absolutely hated.

"So ehm, what are your plans for tomorrow?" She had to smile at his attempt at starting some small talk. They both knew the answer to that question but she couldn't complain, it wasn't like she could come up with some better way to break the silence.

Shrugging her shoulders she pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, suddenly staring down at the tea as if it was th most interesting thing she'd ever seen. "I don't know. Probably finish the book I started reading today and play some minesweeper on the computer or something."She could just as well have said that she'd be breathing and eating and brushing her teeth, even added the fact that she'd be blinking every 5th second or so, considering they were already just stating the obvious, but decided against it.

"Speaking of Minesweeper, I noticed you set new high scores for all the games on the computer." Not knowing whether it was meant as an accusation or a compliment, she found herself studying the front page of yesterdays newspaper very intensely.

"I suppose I've quite a lot of time lately."

"Well I think it's pretty cool." She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, but he just took a sip of his tea before continuing. "Besides, I never could figure out how to play Freecell. So I guess you'll just have to teach me at some point." Putting down her now empty cup she gave him a tiny nod, while at the same time unsuccessfully trying to suppress a yawn.

"Sorry." Josef just grabbed her cup and placed it in the sink along with his own as he gently shook his head.

"No need for apologizing, Abby. The tea just did it's job." At her confused look he decided to elaborate. "It's 3:30. I don't know about you, but I could definitely use some more sleep." Once again trying to suppress a yawn, she nodded her agreement to what he'd just said, and without protest got up and followed him back up the stairs towards the bedrooms.

"Thank you, Dr. Kovac." She bit her lip as he gave her a small smile, but decided to continue before he'd interrupt her to tell her once more to just call him by his first name. "For the tea and for the... distraction." She didn't know what else to call it, but she'd meant what she said. Although it had been pretty awkward, it had still gotten her mind away from the nightmares.

"Any time, Abby." He gave her shoulder a tiny squeeze, the biggest amount of physical contact he'd allow himself to give her, for her sake – and mental health – of course, as they stopped outside her bedroom door. "And remember, if there is anything, even the smallest most silliest thing ever, you're always more than welcome to come to us, including in the middle of the night.

"I know." She nodded, having heard it all before, but while it was almost embarrassing and she knew she'd never dare to actually take them up on the offer, it still made her feel all that more cared for, knowing that they actually meant it.

"Well, goodnight then." Giving her a last reassuring smile he went down the hallway to where the master bedroom was, while Abby retreated back to her temporary room and closed the door before sitting back down on the bed.

She really didn't feel like sleeping, but she hoped that the exhaustion would be enough to knock her out so much that she wouldn't even realize she had fallen asleep. Taking a deep breath she laid down on her back and placed the duvet on top of her, staring at the ceiling above her as her eyes were already getting used to the dark.

But as much as she fought it, it only took a few seconds before she was sleeping like a rock.


End file.
